Lyra's Dust
by Alicia Marianne
Summary: Three years have passed since Will and Lyra parted. Now, she’s desperate to understand the alethiometer while he’s having weird dreams about her dying. And then, there’s this odd girl with two daemons that appears in Will’s world. . .
1. Lyra's sigh

Lyra sighed, sitting on the bench in the Oxford Botanical Garden. Pan, distracted by a peacock daemon perched nearby, was tilting his head lightly in its direction.

The girl held her arms around her, and looked at the plants that surrounded the bench. It was her bench. Hers and Will's. It was their link through the fine tissue of the worlds.

She gazed at an old clock, watching as the seconds flew by patiently, teasing her.

"Come on. Be noon." She hissed through clenched teeth. Pan, in his pine marten form, snapped impatiently at the peacock and it flew away towards its human. He then jumped onto Lyra's lap and curled there. She ran her fingers through his soft, golden fur and remembered briefly how it had felt wonderful when Will did the same thing to Pan.

Both of them shivered at the lovely memory.

And suddenly, noon struck.

Lyra looked up, her eyes filled with tears, as memories of her love flashed one after the other in her mind, so quickly she barely saw them. Pan shivered, his little body trembling.

And suddenly, for the third time since she parted with Will, she felt that soothing sensation she got every midsummer at noon on the bench of the Oxford Botanical Gardens.

Three years had passed since Lyra Silvertongue left Will. And not once had she stopped thinking of him. . .she missed him. . .a lot.

Will sat down on the bench of his own Oxford's Botanical Garden, just as noon struck.

As soon as he sat, he felt kind of a warm feeling inside, like someone he loved had cuddled to him. Someone like Lyra.

Kirjava, invisible to the eyes of the people of Will's world, leaped on his lap, sharing the feeling. She purred as Will scratched her behind her cat ears. The daemon never spoke to say nothing, just as Will. And the boy had been very quiet for the past few years.

Sure, he was happy that his mother was back with him; under a good treatment at the house he shared with Mary Malone, who had gotten back into researching. And his hand had healed, and no apparent scar showed that he ever had a wound, except the apparent lack of two of his fingers. He was happy with the new school he went at. None of this was the cause of his pain.

No. . .he had stopped talking because his heart was thorn apart by his separation from Lyra.

He had sworn to her he would love someone else after they parted, and she had sworn the same thing, but he hadn't done it. At the new school he went to, many girl though he was brave to have suffered the 'accident' that had made him loose his fingers, and a few had asked him out.

But he had refused; telling them there was someone in his heart already. Questions had been asked, but he had answered, thanking the skills for lying Lyra had left behind with him. Another memory of her. . .

A tear slid down Will's cheek and Kirjava was quick to wipe it off with her tail, knowing how he hated others to see him cry.

The warm feeling inside of him faded, and he knew Lyra, somewhere so close yet so far and unreachable, had gotten up, getting ready to leave.

He mimicked her unseen moves, getting up, and walking quietly into the blazing sunlight.

Fifteen-year-old Will sighed as he faced a busy street of Oxford, wondering what Lyra looked like after three years.

"Dame Hannah!" Lyra shouted, jumping up.

The woman, dressed in dull, grayish clothes, her fading hair tied in a knot of her head, turned around and smiled at the sight of the fifteen-year-old.

Lyra ran over, her beautiful blond hair flying around her shoulders, slightly longer than it had been when she parted Will. Her eyes showed no trace of tears, even though a few more had fallen mere seconds ago, and Pan greeted the elderly woman's daemon.

"Hello, Lyra dear. How are you?' She asked kindly. The girl smiled bravely, but there was something fake about her smile.

"I'm alright, Dame Hannah. How are you?" Lyra asked back, polite.

"I'm alright. As good as I'll get, you know. And what might you be doing here?"

Dame Hannah did not know, but Lyra had suddenly constricted on the inside with anger. Pan's fur rose slightly, but the other daemon didn't notice either.

'It's none of her business.' Lyra snarled in her head, angry that someone had questioned on such a. . .personal subject. She was here for Will, and no one was to know about that. She protected her midsummer secret with absurd jealousy.

"Oh. . .you know. Just looking around. Oxford is such a pretty place. . ." She said lightly, in a fake voice, looking around as if she was interested.

Dame Hannah nodded.

"Indeed. But I won't keep you. Run along and have fun during your summer vacation. I'll see you again when you come back to school for autumn. Until then, I'll keep out of your mind, alright?" The lady smiled, and Lyra nodded curtly, turning around with a weak and false smile.

She picked up Pan and ran back to the bench as the lady walked deeper into the Gardens.

She sat down, but the warm feeling that told her Will was there was gone. He had surely left when he felt she wasn't there anymore.

With a sigh, Lyra got up and walked away, Pan trotting at her side.

Will turned in his sleep with a mumble. His room was dark, and the whole house was silent. Both his mother and Mary Malone were asleep, both in their own rooms.

And Will was having an odd dream.

Something told him the dream was happening in a near or distant future, in a time he didn't know. But it felt like it was happening not too far from the present time.

He saw Lyra. She wasn't that much different than from three years ago, with her blond hair and sparkly eyes. But her hair was smoother and longer, and her eyes were even smarted and more furiously alive. Pan was the same as he remembered, but he also looked smarter.

And both had the same love around them.

But then Will saw something odd. He saw Dust. At first, it wasn't that odd; it was the pretty, sand-like sparkle he once saw. He saw it floating in a powerful halo around Lyra and Pan. She looked happy, and like she was about to tell him something important.

But suddenly, Lyra looked like she was hurt. She bent over and groaned, without making a sound.

He couldn't hear her, but he saw she was calling to him. Pan was screaming for Kirjava. Both looked like they were in much pain, and getting weaker.

Will couldn't see why; they weren't harmed physically, but he suddenly noticed that the Dust was flowing away from both of them.

He called for her, but she couldn't hear him either. Every part of his own body hurt as he watched her die. The Dust was flowing away faster and faster, and Pan suddenly disappeared.

Will screamed. He tried to move and do something, but he was like trapped; he could make no movement. He was frozen there, in the darkness, watching as his loved one fell to the ground slowly.

Tears streamed down his cheeks, and he tried to wake up, groaning in his sleep, twisting violently in his bed.

"Lyra. . ." He called.

And before his eyes, in his dream, Lyra's body faded.

At her place stood a huge black wolf, barely distinguishable from the black background. It looked at him with its huge black eyes and growled lightly. Somehow, Will felt that this wolf was a daemon. And beside it appeared a thin, aerodynamic horse with fiery red eyes. It was also a daemon; Will knew it.

'We know you wish to see her.' The wolf said. But it talked mentally; not like an ordinary daemon.

'We have shown you what will happen.' The horse added, in the same mental voice.

'We will meet again. Watch for us. We will come and you will understand.' The wolf

completed, and turned around along with the horse.

"What do you want?" Will shouted out after them, having regained control of his voice.

Neither turned around, but Will got a clear mental picture of the Subtle knife, and with a gasp woke up in his bed, sheets wrapped around him like a straightjacket.

"Kirjava!" He immediately whispered, unnerved by the fact his daemon wasn't there. He didn't like being apart from her. Sure, she stayed home sometimes when he went to school, but there were times he really needed her.

The cat daemon pounced onto his bed, and Will twitched, surprised by this sudden appearance.

He quickly explained his dream to her.

Kirjava frowned, looking very grave in the pale light of the moon.

"They are after the Subtle knife?" She asked quietly, terribly serious.

"Well, that's not quite the impression I got. . .it's more like they're after a part of it."

Will frowned like his daemon. The words made no sense, but somehow, they did. It was a strange feeling.

Both of them glanced absent-mindedly at the leather case containing the ten or so pieces of the knife, which lay on Will's desk, as a reminder of his adventures.

They wondered whose daemon these were, and how they had found Will, who had the knife, and how come they even knew about the Subtle knife.

And just what had that part about Lyra meant? Was she in danger? Will swallowed heavily when he thought that he had no way of helping her if she was.

YAY! First chappy. This is the first HDM story I'm writing. I hope it's good. . .I know it was short, and I swear next chappy will be longer.


	2. Dust and its answers

Lyra looked down at the alithiometer. She ran her fingers over it delicately, lost in her thoughts.

Three years of vigorous studying, and she was still nowhere near being able to understand what it told her. However, when she asked very simple questions with yes or no answers, she could usually make it through.

Like right now, as she was desperate to know if Will was alright. She had asked the question a few days ago, but had not been able to understand the answer. This made her angry. But she was no quitter, and now as she gazed at the instrument, her fingers stopped on the clock-like hands.

She moved the biggest hand slowly, without much confidence, and asked the question simply.

When she was done, the hand, animated by particle of Dust, bounced from symbol to symbol. Lyra wished it could go slower.

As if the Dust had heard her, the hand stopped suddenly and returned to its first symbol, moving slowly from one to another once again. Lyra smiled kindly at the instrument, following the movements with her eyes. She thanked it.

It told her this: He's been silent lately. And misses you. The alithiometer added something more, something that sounded like 'Dreams of you', followed by 'Quest'. But she wasn't sure.

And it said something about the Subtle knife. When she realized this, Lyra gasped. Pan, who was resting on her shoulder, read her thoughts and also gasped.

"I think it said something about the knife being forged again." Pan murmured, leaning closer to the instrument.

Lyra put her hand to her mouth, watching the alithiometer with wide eyes.

"Maybe he's missed you so much and had some dreams about a possibility to reunite with you. . .maybe he set out on a 'quest' to forge the knife again. . ." Pan added.

Lyra violently shook her head.

"No. . .Will would never break a promise." She said, nodding. She was sure of it. "Not when it's this important. . ."

"But. . ."

"No buts, Pan. He wouldn't. The alithiometer is talking about someone else trying to find the knife. I'm sure of it. And I bet Will had some kind of dream about it. . .maybe he's set out on a quest to stop that person. . .I just wish I could read it well!" She added angrily, curling her little fists into tight balls.

Pan rubbed his little ferret-like head against her cheek, in a comforting way. Lyra smiled at him, but frowned back down at the instrument. What was going on?

Will was very quiet as he drank his coffee, Kirjava stalking around the kitchen.

Mary Malone, who was sitting in front of him, and could see his daemon, looked over at the boy in concern.

"Will. . .what's wrong?" She asked, knowing something wasn't right. The frown on the boy's face proved her she was right.

"I had a dream . . ." He said vaguely.

"Ok. About what?"

He stayed silent for a few second, closing his eyes. Mary guessed what the dream was about, but let him tell her.

"Lyra."

The woman smiled interiorly, since she had been right.

"What kind of dream?" She asked in a detached voice, looking away.

Will opened his dark, furious orbs. He watched the woman as she blew air on her coffee, looking out the window into a lovely day. He was judging her.

"I dreamt all the Dust. . .well particles. . .you know (Mary nodded, looking over at him). . .well they got off Lyra, and she died. I don't know why. And there were these two daemon that wanted the Subtle knife. . .or a piece of it. . .and they said that Lyra dying was something that would happen. . .and now I don't know what to do. . ." Will gave an angry sigh and looked away from Mary's deep gaze. Kirjava leaped onto his lap.

The woman bit her lip.

"Maybe it was just a dream . . ." She proposed quietly. Will's furious gave made her flinch interiorly.

"No! At least. . .bah! I have no idea. Maybe it was. But the daemon said they would come back; if I have the dream again, it'll mean its true."

The boy looked at the ceiling and cracked his knuckles distantly.

Mary thought of interrogating the Particle machine back at her job, but just then, Mrs. Parry came, hair wild and eyes still sleepy.

"Will?" She asked, yawning.

Will's mom had been very lucid since she had been taking the medication. Her mind was nearly normal.

The doctors had told them it was impossible to cure her, but to everyone's surprise, Mrs. Parry got better within the first week of her son's return. It was a very good thing.

As for the Particle machine, or the Dustalizer, as Mary called it, it was a newly built machine that was exactly like the one she had before, in her other lab.

She used it to try and understand the world, asking the Dust particles things from time to time. Right now, she needed to have a few questions answered.

Getting up rather machinelike, Mary Malone bid the pair a good day, went upstairs to take a shower, got dressed and left for work.

(0)

Mary Malone passed the guard on the ground floor, and he waved at her. Impatient, she quickly ended the conversation he had started, telling him she really needed to go do some testing up in her lab. Slightly put out, the guard let her through.

Mary rushed upstairs, pressing the elevator button furiously, tapping her heals impatiently.

It was a Saturday, and no one was at the lab except a few men and women doing some special testing. They waved to Mary briefly as she passed their labs.

The woman then reached her own little lab, at the end of the corridor. She closed the door quietly, leaning against it, and sighed very deeply.

She was greeted by the comforting little room in which a huge-screened computer and desk was stuffed. The I-Ching tablet lay beside a cup of coffee on her desk. She smiled at it, remembering all her adventures in the other worlds.

Then, regaining some seriousness, Mary walked up to the huge screen, which was covered in undefined shadowy shapes that kept moving. She looked at it for some time, before slowly connecting herself to the machine. She watched the screen, and saw how the shadows moved excitedly as she connected herself. They were eager to talk.

Flicking on the program that allowed her to use the keyboard to communicate, Mary sat down on a chair and relaxed. She was used to this; it was easy for her to reach the same level of mental calm that Lyra once used with the alithiometer.

She set her fingers over the keyboard and the shadows flickered like flames of the screen.

'I suppose you heard my conversation with Will?' She typed. The answer came back very quickly.

(Yes.)

'So what was that dream?'

She sensed hesitation.

(We know, but we cannot tell you.)

Mary blinked. The Particles had not once refused to answer her. Ever.

'But. . .why?'

(The boy needs to find out on his own. It is his quest, not yours.)

Mary stopped; she felt betrayed, deep inside.

(Do not feel betrayed. We simply cannot tell you because it might change the course of things. The boy must find out on his own.)

'Is there something you could tell me that wouldn't. . .change anything?'

(Yes. The dream was real. The two daemons were real. Lyra's death was real.)

Mary gasped.

'Lyra's. . .dead?'

(Not yet. That is why we cannot tell you everything. Because whenever she lives or dies depends entirely on whenever the boy figures this out.)

Mary sighed with relief; she had gotten quite a scare.

'So what did the daemons want?'

(This we cannot tell you.)

'Who's daemon's were they?'

(A girl's.)

'Wait. . .you mean the belonged to one person?' Mary blinked, confused.

(Yes. But we cannot tell you who it is, and you cannot tell the boy. He must find out on his own, because when he does, the way he copes with it will determine whenever Eve lives or not.)

Mary took a moment to realize that by 'Eve', they meant Lyra. But she was still surprised that someone could have two daemons.

'But how's it possible for someone to have two daemons?'

(The girl is a half-witch, half-human. She was born over three hundred years ago, from a mother witch from Lyra's world, and a father from this world. And she was born in the world of the Torre del Angeli. When one is born in a different world, from two parents from two different worlds, strange things happen. Lyra was born from a father from this world, and a mother from her own world. She would have gotten the same anomaly is she was born in another world. But instead, she was born on her mother's earth, and was given the spirit of Eve, and a destiny that would change humanity.)

'Ok wait. . .so this girl's mother was a witch from Lyra's world, and her dad was like Lyra's father; from this world. And she was born in Cittagaze? But why would an 'anomaly' happen under these circumstances?'

(There were too many different particles around and inside her. It resulted in a daemon that was too different to be one. It split in two, one keeping the particles from Lyra's world, and the other keeping those of this world. Together, they shared the particles of this Cittagaze.)

Mary sat back. But the Particles added something.

(Does the date of three hundred years ago remind you of something?)

It was a strange question, but Mary sat up straight suddenly, having understood its meaning.

"Yes. . ." She gasped, and started typing furiously.

'It was the date of the creation of the Subtle knife, and the opening of the first ever window. Plus the creation of the first Specter. It was what messed up all the worlds. It was what stopped the flowers in the mulefa's world from living.'

The woman watched as an answer typed on the screen at amazing speed.

(Indeed. But the problems did not start there. The first perturbation and the cause of the creation of the Subtle knife was caused by the birth of this anomalous child. And Cittagaze was the made the 'City between the worlds', because that is where the first window was created. But we cannot tell you anything more about this. The boy will find out, and he will tell you.)

The screen faded into shadows again, and Mary unplugged herself from the machine.

So everything they had learned three years ago . . . about how the whole trouble started with the creation of the Subtle knife. . .it wasn't all that true. As a matter of fact, the only force of life that actually knew the whole story was Dust. . .and Dust wasn't saying anything about it.

The woman sighed wearily, wondering what on Hell and Heaven was going to happen now.

And naturally, before leaving, she vowed not to say a word of this to Will, no matter the temptations.

(0)


	3. Aurora

Lyra was sitting in a park, Pan perched on her shoulder, listening to kids as they played. She felt slight jealousy towards the kids; they were so free and careless; they could do what they pleased. She envied them, because she missed the times when she had been one of them.

She sat there because she could not stand being at Jordan college anymore; it also reminded her of the times she had so much fun with Roger.

Lyra sighed angrily and got up. Pan jumped from her shoulder and ran at her side, his little pine marten body undulating as he moved.

"Where should we go?" The little daemon asked. He turned his head as a young puppy daemon ran by him happily.

"I don't know, Pan. . .I feel so. . .out of place. . .and since I haven't been able to read the alithiometer. . .I've felt so lost too. . .like there is no home." Lyra shook her head, a delicate migraine forming near her temples, her golden hair flying.

The pine marten daemon looked up at her, before jumping up her leg and climbing back to her shoulder.

"I've felt that way too. We've been here all our life, and yet, this isn't home." Pan acknowledged.

"Yeah . . .I guess home is where my heart lies. . ." Lyra murmured as they left the park, walking in the sunny streets of Oxford.

"And your heart lies with Will. . ." Pan completed. Lyra nodded sadly.

(0)

Will lay on his bed, alone in the room, hands behind his head. He was thinking of the dream.

"Kirjava?" The boy suddenly questioned.

"Yes?" The daemon answered, curled up near the end of the bed.

"Do you think. . .Lyra's alright?"

Pause.

"Yes."

"But the dream. . ."

"Will, the dream was what is was; a dream. Besides, the daemons said that Lyra's death was something that COULD happen. Not something that will happen, or already did."

Will nodded.

"But I still wonder what they wanted." He admitted, yawning.

And then, his exhausted eyes closed, and along with Kirjava, he fell asleep.

(Dream)

Lyra stood a few feet from Will, looking kindly at him, with much love in her eyes. This look hurt Will so much more than anything else; it was a look that reminded him of his torture and pain for the lovely girl. He loved her, and he could not have her: it hurt him.

"I miss you, Will." Lyra said. This time he heard her voice. It was like the voice of the thousand most beautiful angels, with a chilling, delicate note to it. I made his heart burst with pain and desire.

"Lyra. . ." He called, but not a sound came out of him. Lyra faded.

Again appeared the two daemons. Both stood there, calm, disappearing into the black background.

'Hello, Will Parry.' The wolf said.

'We have been waiting for you.' The horse added. Come to think of it, the horse sounded like a female, and the wolf; an imposing, powerful male.

"Why have you been waiting for me?" Will said. He could talk again.

'Because you have something we want.' The wolf said.

"Then come and get it!" Will snarled, annoyed by this game.

The horse whinnied, and for a second, Will thought it would charge at him. He realized Kirjava wasn't there, and he became scared.

But the horse didn't more and neither did the wolf.

'We cannot.'

"Why?"

'Because.' The wolf said, impatient. 'You have to meet our human. Go to West ridge lane tonight at midnight. Be alone. Our human will be there for you. You do not have to bring the knife if you do not wish to.'

Will blinked, and the whole thing vanished. He suddenly wondered why the two daemons had told him to come see their 'human'. They had said it in a singular mode. Meaning there was one human for two daemons. This stroke him as very dangerous and strange.

He woke up in his bed at the same time as Kirjava. The daemon read his thoughts and saw his dream and instantly, she told him to be cautious. But she said nothing about not wanting go to West Ridge Lane.

(0)

Will sighed, annoyed, scared and furious. Everything was dark around him; West ridge lane was a shadowy part of Oxford, especially at night.

Kirjava looked around the darkness with her cat eyes, sitting by Will, listening intently to any noise out of the ordinary.

The boy had not brung the knife, in case the daemon's human tried to steel it. He was still confused about why there was one human for these two daemons. It was just not normal. Kirjava's fur stood on end at that thought. She knew it was impossible.

But suddenly, all their confused thoughts were put to a stop; light, steady footsteps could be heard.

Kirjava hissed towards a dark figure coming their way, clad in a jet-black cloak. Will curled his fists.

"Will, there is no need to fight." A woman's voice said calmly. Will was taken off guard; he was expecting a man.

"How do you know my name?" He quickly retaliated.

Kirjava moved away from the figure, standing ground nonetheless.

"I know many things, Will Parry. And Kirjava, you needn't to be alarmed. I come unarmed." The figure answered softly, stopping feet from the pair. The boy and his daemon were surprised that the woman knew Kirjava's name, and that she could see the daemon.

"Who are you?" Will asked carefully.

A pale hand came out slowly from the folds of the cape, grabbed the black hood, and pulled it off. Will gasped.

Before him stood a girl that could not be any older than him. She had long, black hair and cold, blue eyes that had an eternal, ever-knowing gaze in them. Will wondered how it was possible she was so young but that her eyes looked so old. The boy was vaguely reminded of Serafina Pekkala, the witch of Lyra's world. She also looked young, but her eyes showed her real age.

This girl had very pale skin, but not in a sickly type of way; more a beautiful pale.

She smiled at him, the grin drawing little lines in the corners of her mouth.

"I don't look so evil, now do I?" She laughed gently. But Will stayed on his guard, reminded of Mrs. Coulter, Lyra's mom. She had also been very nice and pretty, but was as evil as the death of dawn.

"Who are you?" Will asked again, his voice wavered a bit.

"I am Aurora Borealis." The girl answered serenely.

Will blinked. "Are you related to Lord Boreal?"

She shook her head, black hair flying.

"No, but I have met him before he was killed by Mrs. Coulter."

The boy nodded. And awkward silence stood between them, but Aurora didn't seem disturbed by it.

"So. . .are those two daemon from my dreams yours?" Will asked, desperate for answers and wanting the silence to leave.

"Yes." Aurora answered him. She extended two hands to the sky, and with a powerful swish of wings, two black ravens flew down onto her open arms. Kirjava, gasped, not having noticed them, even if they were sitting on the broken streetlamp right above them.

"They can still change forms?" The boy questioned, surprised. He knew, because Lyra once told him, that daemons always stopped changing when someone reached around the age of twelve.

Aurora nodded. The two ravens morphed very quickly into the horse and wolf Will had seen in his dreams. Both bowed their heads to him in respect. The boy nodded and Kirjava gently moved her head, still on her guard.

"This is Equinox (Aurora pointed the wolf) and this is Solstice (she pointed the horse)."

Will opened his mouth, closed it and opened it again; so sound came out. He sighed, and rubbed his head as a headache started to show itself.

"Alright. . .who are you?" He asked, rubbing his temples.

"Aurora Borealis." Aurora repeated herself. Will sighed.

"That's not what I meant. . . where are you from?"

"A city called Cittagaze."

"What?!? But then. . .your daemons will get sick if you don't got back. . .what. . ." Will was lost, and felt dizzy. He rested against the broken street lamp as Aurora watched him.

"I'd better tell you the whole story then. . .' Aurora sighed. ' I come from Cittagaze, but not just from there. I was only born there. Where someone really comes from depends on who his parents were. You, for one, come from this world, because both your parents are from this world. My mother was a witch from Lyra Silvertongue's world and my father was from here.

And I'm over three hundred years old. . .I stopped counting a while back. . .

But anyway. There were once, very long ago, a few windows opened in the fabric of the worlds. Before the Subtle knife was even created. They were natural windows, and since they were a part of life, Specters were not born from them. There was no such thing as Specters back then. And since the world always had these windows, since the start of times, they did not make Dust leave.

My father was a rich man living in northern France. He owned his own land, and his own castle. He had servants, and a beautiful wife. His name was Aesir Borealis.

But he also loved adventures.

So one day, he left to go hunt with a few men. Back then, many castles were regularly attack by bandits. My father had always been there to push these bandits back. But that one time, he wasn't there when a huge gang of them attack his castle. His wife and only son were killed savagely, along with the rest of his people. All his riches were gone.

But my father was a brave, protective man, so he chose to go after then bandits, who had headed north from his castle. He set out to avenge his wife and son, but never really came back.

He got lost in the woods, and one night as he ran from wolves, he accidentally found one of the windows to another world, and ran into it without knowing. The wolves, scared of this floating window, did not follow him. He didn't know it then, but he had entered my mother's world.

My mom was the leader of a powerful clan of witches. Her name was Hel Freyja. She found my father, lost and alone in the woods.

Thankfully her daemon was away at the time, or my father would have been too scared of the mighty eagle called Njord that was my mother's daemon.

She took him in, and slowly introduced him to this world he did not know. Before either of them knew it, they had fallen in love with each other.

But the witches of my mother's clan refused to have him around, since he was from another world. So with my father and Njord, my mother fled through the skies, away from her clan.

She accidentally passed through a window in the sky, so well hidden no one knew of it.

She found herself in the city of Cittagaze. There, she gave birth to me and me brother, days before my father died, since he was rather old for the times; only forty. And since he hadn't returned to his world in nearly three years, his body had taken serious damage. He wasn't as resistant as some. A few people have spent over twenty years in another world, and have been perfectly fine. My father wasn't as strong as them.

But something strange happened when my brother and I came to life.

Solstice was supposed to be my brother's daemon, and Equinox was mine. But something happened right then and there; since both our daemons had too many different particles from the three worlds, my Equinox gave his particles of this world to Solstice, and Solstice gave him the particles of Lyra's world. And both shared the particles of Cittagaze.

But by doing so, Equinox and Solstice became two parts of one, and since my daemon had started the particle exchange, they both linked to me. My brother, strangely, did not die, or became like a ghost; he grew up normally. Seemingly, his daemon was inside him.

At the moment of the particle exchange, there was a huge earthquake that shook every single world alive: it was so powerful it actually moved the worlds so they were no longer parallel to each other. My birth had changed humanity's future.

And since Cittagaze was the epicenter of this earthquake, the tissue of the city became very delicate for a few seconds. And accidentally, one boy made a swishing move with a knife, and opened a window that was not naturally created. The very first Specter came out.

No one knew what it was, but within days, every adult started to fear it; everyone knew that the Specter 'killed' the adults, but no one knew why.

Scientists of Cittagaze tried to use the same knife as the boy had used to open the window, to kill this Specter. It did not work.

So they started to work on a knife that could cut anything and everything. It was called Forseti, the blade of justice. My brother and I were nine years old when it was forged.

Many people, including my brave mother, died to the hands of the Specter.

And even though I was a witch's child, everyone thought I hadn't inherited the long life, because I looked like any normal human after nine years of age. My brother too, but for him it was normal, for the boys of witches of Lyra's worlds have no long life.

But what they did not know was that my growth would slow down in a year or so, and afterwards my eternally long life would begin. As for my brother, another strange this happened; his growth slowed down at the same age as mine. He had inherited the long life, which was against many rules of Lyra's world.

They gave me Forseti, for I was considered a Goddess, since I had two daemons and told me to kill the Specter.

But Forseti was nothing like the blade you had. It was so much more powerful and sharp that with a simple movement you could cut a hole so huge it would engulf the world. You had to be very careful with the blade.

And even though I couldn't see the Specter, people told me it was coming right at me. I slowly extended my hands, with Forseti, and the Specter died, cut with it.

But my simply movement had caused anther window to be opened, and a new Specter came out. The scientists didn't know what to do.

They finally decided on something: they would remove Forseti's miniscule tip, taking away its power to open the worlds. Because the minuscule tip of your blade is the only thing that makes it different from other blades. Sure, it can cut through anything, just as my Forseti can. But that tip is magic, and it is what holds the possibility to open windows in the fabric of air. My brother, which was jealous with my attention, would be given the new blade, for I had been a 'failure'.

And as they tore the magic tip off my Forseti, I could swear I heard her scream and beg to be left alone. I knew she was promising never to open a world again, if she was left with her unique power. But the men, such simple, foolish humans, did not hear her, and took the tip off. I heard Forseti cry with agony. She was given back to me, without the power to open worlds.

They created a new knife, and called it Easheatter. That is your blade. It was less powerful, and to activate the tip and allow it to open windows, the chosen one and the blade had to become one.

And Easheatter was given to my brother. His two fingers were cut off, just as yours and he learned to use the blade, because it talked to him and made him wise, and he killed the second Specter. Then, he closed all the unnatural windows, before swearing to never use the blade again.

But unlike my Forseti, Easheatter was evil, greedy and in thirst of power. Instead of appreciating the gift of the magic tip, like my Forseti once had, he used it against the world. My brother was rather pure, even if he had been jealous of me. But Easheatter saw this jealousy in his heart and brung it out, making my brother greedy, hateful and vicious. The twin I had learned to love so much was gone.

He brung back gold, books and food from everywhere. For a time, it was appreciated at Cittagaze, and my brother managed to keep Specters at bay. He convinced the citizens there were no more of the Specters.

But Forseti knew otherwise. We warned the people of Cittagaze, but they ignored us. Later, we watched sadly as they all died, killed by the Specters.

And soon, my brother saw what he had done, and abandoned Easheatter near the Torre Del Angeli. Easheatter was alone, and my brother vanished into one of the worlds he opened.

Together with Equinox, Solstice and Forseti, we put Easheatter back into the Torre Del Angeli, as he tried to convince us to keep him and use him to get riches. We all refused, and locked him in a box of copper, from which he could have broken out easily if one had tried to save him.

But for a hundred years, not once was Easheatter touched. Forseti wanted to get her magic tip back, but I refused; enough damage had been done.

We closed a few windows, but they were extremely hard to find, and as we realized soon enough, they were not just in Cittagaze; they were in worlds I had never even heard of. One of these worlds was that of the mulefas.

There, their trees were dying out because Dust was flowing away. We closed a few windows, and the Dust slowed down, but many windows were in the sky, and impossible to reach. My daemons could not yet separate from me, as those of witches do, and I could not fly on branches of pine trees, for I had no magical powers like my mother.

We soon gave up on this quest, exhausted, and I realized I needed to live in either Cittagaze, or change between your world and Lyra's. Why? Because one of my daemons was from this world, and the other was from Lyra's. The only place we all had in common was Cittagaze, and it had become desolate, so we couldn't go back. It was too dangerous because of the Specters.

Besides, Easheatter was in there, and we weren't ready to go see him again. I knew I would give into the temptation to use him.

So I returned to Lyra's world, and walked to a place the witches call the Desolation. It is a place where, long ago, something terrible happened. It is where nothing grows, and where no daemons can enter.

It was my time of age to walk through that place, without Equinox or Solstice, and emerge on the other side a different person. I learned my brother had walked through there, and stories told that he had discovered his own daemon, deep inside of himself. I was surprised, because I thought that when I took his Solstice, I took away his only daemon.

But I concentrated on my task; that of crossing the Desolation. Once I did this, my daemons could leave me and I would feel no pain. It is what you have done, Will, when you entered the World of the Dead.

And Equinox and Solstice punished me for leaving them there, and left me alone with Forseti for a few days. I was painful, but when they came back, without a word we agreed to go close more windows.

So I have spent all my life walking every possible world, closing windows, and hearing many things.

But now Will, I need your help. All the windows have been closed, and I cannot open a new one. I need Easheatter, which I know you have, to take away his tip and open a window to Cittagaze. My daemons need to heal soon, and if one of them dies, I die.

But this is not just a one-way deal I am offering you. I know that Lyra, in her world, wished very much to see you, and this would be your chance to see her. Will, please, I am asking for your help." Aurora breathed deeply.

Will blinked, fascinated by her story. It would take him a long time to understand everything.

"But. . .I promised Lyra I wouldn't go back. And if I go back just once, I'll want to go over and over. The Subtle knife, or Easheatter, if he's as evil as you described him, he'll convince me to go." Will protested weakly. He had no desire to refuse this proposition, but knew he had to.

"I know how you feel Will. But I only want Easheatter's tip. Once I take his tip, he will no longer have the power to open worlds, and he will leave you alone. But that is not all, Will, you MUST got see Lyra. She doesn't know it yet, but she'll soon understand that to read the aleithiometer and know if you're alright, she will have to release the Dust from herself.. Only children, who aren't so shrouded in Dust, can read her instrument. That is why her gift disappeared when her daemon became his final form; because Dust covered her up, like it does to any adult.

And if she gets rid of the Dust around her, she'll die. . . . ."

(0)


	4. Mrs Parry's gift

Will gaped. Kirjava blinked, surprised by what Aurora had said.

"Lyra. . .would let herself die to know if I'm alright or not?" Will questioned, unsure.

"Yes. But she doesn't know yet that to read the aleithiometer, she has to let go of the Dust around her. Not yet." Aurora corrected.

"Then when will she know?" Will sounded very worried. The black-haired girl shared his look. Solstice, which had turned into a cat that resembled Kirjava, was weekly attempting to cheer the daemon up, but it received only hostility.

"I'm not sure. But I sense my brother had something to do with it. I have not seen him in nearly two hundred years, but I know he'll try to regain his long lost power. I've been expecting it for a long time. And Lyra has something to do with it."

Kirjava hissed at Solstice, and sent a warning at Will. The boy blinked.

"Hey! How can we trust you?" He suddenly asked in an accusing voice. The girl didn't seem surprised by his reaction. In fact, she looked like she had been expecting it.

"The vision of Lyra that you had in your sleep; it was what I saw. And I see many things. For one, I saw you with Easheatter, and I saw everything you did: your mother, Cittagaze, your father Jopari, The World of the Dead, Metatron, the Authority, Mary Malone and your daemon. Will, if you cannot trust me, when I am trying to save Lyra, then you cannot trust anyone."

There was a silence, and at the same time as Will sighed in defeat, Kirjava let Solstice lick her face with her cat tongue.

Aurora smiled kindly as Equinox, who seemed more distant and cold, also turned into a cat, although larger and stronger, and rubbed his head against Kirjava's.

"Wait. . .'Will realized something, 'Did you know my father?"

Aurora smiled softly. "Yes. He came to Lyra's world as John Parry, became known as Stanislaus Grumman, and was adopted by a tribe who called him Jopari."

"But did you meet him personally?"

"Yes, I did. I came to him to ask about dream recall. He taught me how to see the future in my sleep."

"But. . .if you knew him. . .you could have found a window to let him back into my world. He could have come back. . ." Now Will sounded angry that someone had stopped him from seeing his father sooner in the past.

"I could have, indeed. I even asked him if we wanted to return, after he told me he had a wife and a son in another world. But he himself refused to come back. He said he missed you a lot, and he wished to see you again, but something told him that if he were to leave, he who was a very important piece on the chessboard, would destroy the white side's victory." Aurora said. Will started at her with raised eyebrows.

"I don't see what could have been important about staying there. . ." He nearly snarled. Why the hell was he so angry? Perhaps it was because too many bad things happened in a day's time.

"Oh, but he was important. Imagine: if he had come back, you would not have had those problems with the government, and wouldn't have run away from home. And what would have happened then? You wouldn't have entered Cittagaze, you wouldn't have met Lyra, you wouldn't have gone on a journey to save the world, and you most certainly wouldn't have done everything you did up to now."

Will nodded. He calmed down a bit; Aurora had a point.

"But if he would have come back, he wouldn't have died on that mountain top, when we first met. He would have lived longer. . . ."

"Maybe he would have. . .but everyone has to die, no matter the time it takes. Just like a newborn child can die a day after its birth, or live to ripe old age, your father could have died any time. And if he died on that mountain top, it was his destiny to die there."

Will sighed. "It's not that. . ." She didn't understand.

"I know, Will Parry. You wanted more time with him. But there is no future without sacrifice. If your father would have come back, you would have never left, and millions of innocents would be dead by now. But I mustn't keep you; your mother is worried. She is waiting for you in the kitchen, and you know how scared she can get without you. Remember you are life to her, and she is death without you."

And suddenly, Equinox turned into a huge, half-lion, half-eagle creature called a griffin, and Aurora jumped on his back without another word.

Solstice stayed by Kirjava, watching calmly as his human prepared to leave.

"Solstice will stay with you; she is able to ward off anything that might want to harm you."

"Hey! Wait. . .why would anything want to harm me? And where are you going?" Will ran a few steps after the griffin.

"I have things to take care of in the North." And Aurora flew away without answering Will's other question, black cape flying.

The boy blinked, and turned to his daemon, which sat silently by Solstice.

"Well then. . .Solstice. . .just tell me. . .what would want to 'attack' me?" Will tried to be subtle, but failed miserably.

"It does not matter. For as long as I am with you, it does not matter." The creature answered, speaking out loud this time. Her voice was so kind and soft, defenseless, that Will thought of his mother.

Heart bleeding, worry eating his insides, Will left for home.

(0)

Mrs. Parry was sitting at the kitchen table, just as Aurora said she would. Will timidly walked up to the woman, who looked over at him very simply. She couldn't see the daemons, so the presence of Solstice went by unnoticed.

"Hey mom." Will said, hugging her. His mother might be a bit odd to some; he felt that she was the only one who could really understand him, besides Mary. And sometimes she said such amazing things. . .

"A girl. . .with black hair. She told you something troubling. I feel your heart hurts." Mrs. Parry murmured to her son. He stepped back a bit, watching her in the moonlight. She had never told him how she knew these kinds of things.

"Yeah. . ." Will said awkwardly.

"And there is another daemon with yours. I feel it." The woman nodded, and looked over at Solstice, who was sitting in the shadows. Will had no idea how she knew about daemons, and chose to ignore it.

But Mrs. Parry clicked her tongue softly, and Solstice came running to her. Against all laws of taboo through which a human could not touch the daemon of another, Solstice leaped on Mrs. Parry's lap, and she scratched him. Will, surprised, wondered if Aurora had felt it.

"Mom . . . how come you see daemons?" The boy asked.

There was a pause. "I don't see them. I feel them. It used to scare me, before you had your own daemon. Now I'm not scared." She lifted her hand, and Solstice leaped off her lap.

Will frowned. Mrs. Parry looked over at Will.

"Keep this daemon close. . .it will save your life." She murmured, got up, hugged her stunned son and left.

Will shrugged helplessly, and shared a look with Kirjava, before walking up the stairs to his room.

Before lying down in his bed, he gazed at the leathery case containing Easheatter, and shivered, wondering if the blade had 'used' him to do evil. But Kirjava disagreed with that; after all, he had saved the world, not tried to destroy it.

(0)

Lyra looked at the stars from her window, and ran her fingers in Pan's fur.

She was sitting in the stone opening that was window, one leg hanging in the emptiness, nearly five stories from the ground. Pan was curled against her chest, eyes closed, trying to ignore the height they were at.

'I wish I could read the aleithiometer. . .' Lyra sighed deeply. Pan rubbed his head against her chest, and she kept scratching him softly.

Her eyes closed, and she slowly drifted to sleep on the edge of the window.

In her restless sleep, as she walked the streets of Oxford in her dreams, she kept seeing a man dressed in a black cloak, but he disappeared from sight and reach every time she tried to look at him closer.

And when Lyra woke up the next morning, she had no memory of this dream.

(0)

Not bad, eh? (I GOT REVIEWS! YES! THANK YOU SO MUCH!) Seriously, you don't know how much this means to me. I've been waiting for like forever to get a least one review until one day I went like; if I don't have a least one review, I quit. And I saw I had three! Yippee!


	5. The voice of Easheatter

Will lay on his bed, throwing a baseball in the air and catching it in one hand. Kirjava, lying on the edge of the open window, resting, looking at the ball lazily.

Solstice, who had become a black, silky panther, was washing herself with long laps of her tongue, paying not attention to the others.

The boy was very thoughtful, and wondering what on earth was happening, would happen and already did happen. He was pretty sure that if Solstice wasn't here when he woke up, he would have believed Aurora and everything she told him was just a dream.

And suddenly, Will stopped throwing the ball. His hand fell to his side and he dropped in to the floor. Solstice looked over at him, analyzing the sudden change of sounds. She watched as Will, a sad look on his face, got out of bed and walked to his desk.

He pushed aside a few papers and picked up the leather case containing Easheatter. He returned to his bed, and sat down on it.

Kirjava leaped off the window, and along with Solstice, came next to Will. They watched him as his trembling fingers opened the case, and the pieces of the blade slipped out of it, falling to his bed.

Immediately, Solstice flattened her ears over her head and snarled. Kirjava blinked, wondering what had aggravated the larger daemon.

"What do you hear?" Will asked. He knew the daemon could hear the blade.

"Easheatter's lament. His empty promises. His desire to be one and free. His hate towards you, Will." Solstice answered, relaxing slightly.

"Why does he hate me?"

Pause. Solstice turned into a raven, and landed on the desk's lamp.

"You have broken him twice. And the first time, you mended him, but he became ugly. Remember Will, that everything truly evil always searches for beauty, for it will make it more attractive and harder to resist. Easheatter hates you because you have made him ugly."

The boy and his daemon exchanged looks. Scared looks.

"Put him back, Will. His lies are breaking me."

Will did not understand what Solstice meant, but carefully, he put back all nine pieces into the leather case.

The bird then took it into her beak, and fluttered back to the desk, where she set it underneath piles of paper. Solstice turned back into a black leopard, and continued licking herself in a puddle of light that came through the window.

Kirjava returned to the window, and Will continued throwing his ball.

More questions invaded his mind.

(0)

Lyra walked out of Jordan College, and into a fiery morning. The sun was up high, but upcoming clouds announced a possibility of rain.

Pan was on her shoulder, sending glances at passersby. Lyra's back hurt pretty badly, since she had slept on the window's edge all night, so her walking was a bit stiff. But she managed to get them to the nearby canal.

She looked around at the gypsies, wondering is Ma Costa was here. But she failed to see her or her lovely boat, so she simply walked up to the edge of the canal instead.

She remembered how she used to swim in there with the other kids, and how Pan would turn into a fish or dolphin and play with the other daemons. Now, she missed those times, and her heart burst with jealousy as she watched other kids do the same.

Lyra turned around with a sigh, and suddenly saw a caped figure slip right out of her sight.

Pan sent her a warning by nibbling on her shoulder, but a strange feeling of dejavue pushed the girl to go after the figure.

She broke into a half-run, her back aching terribly.

But again, the figure disappeared. She followed it, frowning. Something told she really needed to reach whoever was under that black cape.

"Wait!" Lyra shouted, pushing past a few people. They groaned and shouted after her, but she ignored them.

And suddenly, there was a scream.

Lyra herself gasped, as all of a sudden, in the center of a large park, a huge dragon appeared out of nowhere. The girl had only seen dragons in old books at Jordan, and this one could only qualify as one.

He roared, opening, his massive, menacing jaws filled with rows upon roars of fangs, and spread out his giant leathery wings.

Screaming, kids went scrambling for cover, as Lyra stood there and gaped. Pan, with a squeak, had disappeared in her shirt.

The dragon stood on its rear paws and roared so mightily the ground shook. And on top of his head, Lyra suddenly saw the caped figure. She was about to call out for it, but just then, with a flap of his wings that sent Lyra flying in the wind, the dragon took off, and disappeared.

The girl scrambled to her feet, picking Pan up, and ran a few steps after the dragon. But the creature was long gone.

Lyra decided it was best if she disappeared from the scene, and quickly ran past gangs of kids and adults who were muttering very fast.

(0)

Aurora looked over at the horizon, sitting on Equinox, who was still a large hippogriff. They were stationed in the air, hundreds of feet above the ground.

They had stopped because the girl had suddenly felt something; a wave of amazing power, followed by a distant feeling of. . .a feeling that felt, warm, welcoming. Like when you meet an old friend after being apart for a very long amount of time.

The girl sighed.

"Aurore. . ." She murmured. It seemed her brother was causing trouble again. . .but in another world.

As Equinox flew on towards the North, Aurora wondered whenever her brother was in Lyra's world yet, and if he was, if he had found her.

And he probably had found her, because that wave of power could only have come from Tenebrus, his daemon that loved the dragon form.

(0)

Wasn't that good? Eh? Well anyways. Please review. Next chappy will be up soon.

BTW, Aurora's brother's name is Aurore. I know its sounds like a girl's name but hey, its my story! And Aurore's daemon is Tenebrus. (duh). Thanks for the reviews! You peeps rock!

Peace out.


	6. Charles's lies

Equinox landed with a thump on the entrance of a large stone temple, and Aurora slid off his back, legs shaking because of the long, stiffening trip.

Equinox turned into a jet-black raven and landed on the girl's shoulder as she walked up to the temple's doors. She pushed them up, groaning under the strain, and walked inside as the doors shut themselves on their gongs.

She walked into a large room where many men dressed in black robes were sitting, reading dusty books. A few of them, the younger ones, looked up at her as she entered. The rest just kept reading.

The girl made her way to the front of the room, to a door that lead into the main priests' chambers.

This temple was constructed in high mountains, away from civilization, because the priests that lived here knew about the parallel worlds, and studied them.

There was this kind of temple in nearly each of the worlds, and the priests that lived there were born in those worlds, and died there.

Their job was to protect the world they were born in, and try to learn about it. They also had to keep in touch with the priests of the other world, but since all the windows had been closed, it had been very hard to do that. That's why Aurora was sent out to get the blade's tip.

But what she'd been sent out to do was a lie, and she was here to make it clear.

The girl pushed open the doors to the main priest's room and Equinox leaped from her shoulder and became a huge, imposing snow leopard. The priest's daemon, a little white cat, hollered and hid behind the man, who looked shocked at Aurora's fury.

"Aurora. . ." The man dropped his book at the look the girl sent him.

"You lied to me!" She roared so loudly everyone in the other room looked up. In one, sudden move, the men all scrambled up and ran out of the room to the dormitories.

"I. . ." Was all priest Charles managed to get out under the fiery look the girl and her daemon sent his way.

She took a step into the room, and he took one back.

"You told me the boy had already been turn against the world by Easheatter's lies. You told me it was imperative I killed him, before he became like. . .like Aurore." The black-haired half-witch snarled.

Equinox bared his fangs ragefully, taking over the appearance of a small dragon about eight feet in height. The priest whimpered.

"But. . .I thought he. . ." Charles started. Equinox roared so loudly the temple shook. The man covered his ears as the creature roared. Aurora made no move.

"You lied to me, Charles. Thankfully I spied on the boy at first to see if he was too dangerous to attack. I saw nothing but purity in his heart. Easheatter hates him, Charles. The blade doesn't want the boy. I'm happy I've listened to Solstice when she told me to wait before charging into the unknown. But that is all beside the point. What I want to know, Charles, is why oh mighty why you wanted that boy dead so much." Aurora seemed to have calmed down a bit, but Equinox still looked furiously at Charles's cat daemon, as if he'd like to rip it to shreds.

"Well. . .Aurora. . ."

"And no lies, Charles. You owe me the truth."

"Alright. I suppose you've heard of Lyra. .the reincarnation of Eve?"

"Yes, I have."

"Well. . .she is linked to the boy with the blade. And what her future holds in store is great and evil. That's why. . .well we knew Aurore was after her. . .and we decided. . ." Charles paused, uncertain.

"Tell me." Aurora pressed on.

"We decided it would be best if. . .if Aurore killed her." Charles looked away from the girl's piercing eyes as they widened in even more fury.

"Charles, do you realize what you almost did?" She snarled, trying to keep her calm.

The man shook his head, frowning.

"My BROTHER is far more dangerous that Lyra. And he is looking for a way to take away her powerful concentration of Dust, and use it for him. If he manages to fool the girl and make her release her Dust, not only will he kill the one person that might be able to destroy him, but he will gain enough power to tear windows in the fabric of the worlds that are the size of the universe. He will rein everything and everyone, and won't even need Easheatter to come and destroy every world existing." Aurora growled. Charles looked sorry and shocked.

"We didn't. . ." He never finished.

"I know you didn't know! Now here's what I'M going to do: I am going to go back to the boy. He had Easheatter, even if the blade is now in nine or so pieces. I will take him to you, and you will forge Easheatter, take his tip and put it on Forseti. Only my blade will be able to kill Aurore. And only Lyra will be able to use it for that purpose. We must hurry. There is little time, because Aurore has surely found Lyra by now. Understood, Charles?" Aurora said, teeth clenched.

The man looked furious.

"I absolutely refuse to forge Easheatter. . ." He snarled at her. But he never finished what he was about to add, because his cat daemons, which had stepped bravely from behind its human, got bashed savagely by Equinox's dragon tail, and flew into a bookcase, making several books fall out.

Charles groaned and fell to the ground, hand over his heart.

"Charles. . ." Aurora's eyes flared, voice warning.

"You will do as we say. You will forge the blade." Equinox finished, turned back into a panther.

The girl glared, and walked out, followed by her daemon.

Charles suddenly burst into tears, and clutching his heart, crawled to his daemon, which was getting up slowly from the floor.

The little cat meowed softly before fainting. Charles followed in into darkness.

(0)

Dark, eh? Who would have known Equinox could do that to a daemon? Reviews appreciated.

Quizgirl: Thanks for your review! You got a horse? Aw! Lucky! And thanks again for your comment. I'll take it as a compliment. BTW, if you like this story, ( I'll use this as a chance for publicity) I'm going to publish a book soon (hopefully), under the name of Aimee La Bellemort, or Alicia Bednarski. Why one of those two names? Because Alicia is my real name and Aimee will one day be my stage name, if I ever become an actress ( I got big dreams, ok?). So the book is called For the cause. If you like my writing, you should check it out.

Kaiame: Thanks for all your reviews. You're the one that keeps me going, girl.

Princess of Starlight: Thanks. : )

Tehvioleteyedone: Thanks for the review. Next chappy will be up soon.


	7. Dream of Will

Equinox had turned into a small dragon, Aurora riding on his back. They were high above the clouds, so no one could see them.

They were flying back South, heading back to Will's as fast as they could. Time was counted, because Aurore would soon try to get Lyra on his side.

(0)

Lyra walked the streets for the rest of the day, her mind focused entirely on the dragon and its human. She was sure the huge creature was the caped person's daemon. She was sure of it.

Pan insisted that she dropped it, and didn't try to find the person, but Lyra refused; she was convinced that that someone knew how she could read the aleithiometer again. And she was desperate to know if Will was alright, where her parents were, and have all her unasked questions answered.

Pan still insisted it was a bad idea.

With an annoyed sigh, the girl walked out from between two houses, heading straight for Jordan. The sun was setting, and parents were chasing their kids all over the streets.

She found her way through the fiasco of screams, and walked up to the front doors, pushing them open.

Lyra slipped inside and disappeared behind the doors, closing them.

She was greeted by a few people, and waved back at them, before continuing her way to her room, on one of the tallest floors, in a tower.

Once there, she shut the door, locked it, and pressed her back against it. Lyra shut her eyes and sighed deeply, relaxing. She was exhausted.

Pan leaped from her shoulder to the bed, eager to get a good night's sleep.

Without even thinking of going down to eat something, Lyra collapsed beside him and closed her eyes.

Within minutes, her tiered body fell asleep, and her mind dreamed.

(Dream)

Lyra stood in darkness. There was no floor, no walls, no roof, and no skies.

She watched everything calmly, feeling a slight note of panic in the pit of her stomach. She ignored it, and kept looking around.

For a second, she thought her eyes weren't even open, because of the darkness. But suddenly, Will appeared in front of her, and she saw him.

Smiling, he greeted her. Lyra smiled back, waving, her heart filled with love and joy.

This Will looked older than when she had last seen him; he looked so handsome, with his dark eyes and wavy dark hair!

And now, he was saying something. He was scowling, as if he was worried. Lyra tried to read on his lips, but growled in frustration when she saw she couldn't.

She wanted to tell him to slow down, and talk louder, because she couldn't hear him. But the second that thought formulated in her head, Will suddenly bend over, both hands on his stomach.

When he got back up, Lyra screamed. She saw the Subtle blade inside of him, opening him.

She saw how his face became a mixture of fury and pain, and how he drew the blade out. She saw the blood running out of the wound.

And then, he screamed something.

Lyra read his lips this time, and understood 'Aurora'. Will looked furious. He seemed to be accusing this 'Aurora' of what was happening to him. Like she had stabbed him, or something.

Lyra tried to tell him it would be all right, but no sound came out of her mouth.

Then, panicked, she realized neither Pan nor Kirjava were there.

And as she was about to call for them, Will fell to the floor and faded.

"WILL!" Lyra roared, tears streaming down her face; she had regained her voice. But Will was gone.

In his place appeared a white wolf. It howled, as , and Lyra froze on the spot.

'Lyra. . .' It called, in an odd, echoing voice, ' You can stop this. . .'

Lyra screamed for it, for its help, but the darkness faded, and she woke up in her bed, twisted in the covers.

Pan was at her side, worry in his eyes.

"What happened?" He asked quickly.

"Will's in trouble!" Lyra told him in a whisper.

They both looked at each other, terrified.

(0)

Solstice looked out the window, unable to sleep. Equinox was near; she could feel him. Her heart called for him, and he told her he'd be there soon.

But she was worried all the same.

Glancing at the boy, she wondered what would happen to him once they took Easheatter's tip.

Was he needed to defeat Aurore? Would he be able to meet Lyra again? Would he even survive when Easheatter lost his tip?

Because what the boy didn't know was that is he wasn't strong enough, Easheatter, who had bonded with his soul, would kill him when his tip was taken off.

Solstice shook her head; the boy would surely make it. He would survive the end of the world to see Lyra again. His love for the girl was stronger that Solstice's for Equinox.

The large panther sighed, looking back out the window.

All they needed now was time. . .

(0)

Sorry for the short chapter. . .I didn't have ideas. : )

Quizgirl: It'll be published in stores. Sorry. But who knows. . .maybe it'll get published in Norway too.

Kaiame: I'll be looking for your book too. Just don't give up on it, alright? Even when it seems its super hard.

NOTE: I know the whole ' some people in Will's world see daemons, some don't' thing is really confusing, so here's what I figured out: kids, like Will, can see daemons, because he was able to see Lyra's when he first met her. But adults, or kids who 'attracted' more Dust, can't, because Serafina Pekkala told Mary Malone that others couldn't see her daemon if she didn't show them the 'technique' to see them. Does that clear anything up? If it doesn't, then I'm sorry, but I can't be of any help.

Thanks.


	8. Flight

Will was still sleeping as the first rays of dawn pierced the sky. Solstice, in her snow leopard form, shifted, and her yellow eyes opened, her pupils becoming thin slights to control the light that came in through the window.

She looked over at the horizon, perfectly still, when she heard a voice in her head.

'Wake up the boy. . . we have to leave as soon as we can.'

It was Equinox.

With a loving gaze to the black spot that was coming their way, Solstice got up, stretched and walked up to Kirjava, who slept besides the boy.

She turned into a golden cat, and jumped onto the bed. Kirjava shifted, and her eyes opened cautiously. She saw the other daemon, and hissed, demanding some space.

Solstice, turned into a green, ruby-necked hummingbird, flew up, and out of the cat daemon's reach.

"What is it?" Kirjava asked, stretching and looking up at the buzzing bird. Will groaned, awakening, and rolled over.

"Equinox is here. Will must get up. We have to leave." Solstice turned into a squirrel, and chirruped on the boy's desk.

At that moment, a small dragon flew into the room, Aurora on his back. Kirjava hissed furiously, leaping on Will's chest, scratching him.

"What the?" Will yelled, sitting up, his eyes closing because of the sleep in them, and the light that filtered through the window.

Aurora, ignoring his confusion, and Kirjava's trembling, got off Equinox, who instantly turned into a black leopard and ran up to Solstice.

The female daemon also turned into a leopard and rubbed her head against Equinox's. Both started to purr.

"Will, we must leave." Aurora told him.

"Why?" Will groaned, falling back on his bed, one hand scratching Kirjava.

"Easheatter must be forged."

The boy sat up again.

"And why?"

"Because we can only take his tip when he is whole. If he is in pieces, his tip is without magic. He cannot open windows." Aurora explained.

"And just why do you need me for that? Can't you just take the blade?" The boy questioned, getting both legs slowly out of bed.

Aurora sighed. "No. You see, Easheatter had chosen you as his carrier, so you, and you alone can forge him in a way that will bring his powers back, and you alone can break him."

Will rubbed his face.

"And where's Lyra in all of this?"

"Pardon?"

"Lyra. . .is she alright?"

Aurora paused.

"I think . . .but it won't be long until my brother finds her. That's why we must hurry." Aurora looked out the window as Will threw off his covers, and walked up to the bathroom in nothing but his boxers.

Solstice and Equinox were too busy licking each other to notice anything.

The boy washed his face, and silence ensued until he put some pants on and Aurora looked over at him again. She was surprised to find his piercing gaze staring at her.

"And how are we going to get there?" He asked.

She refused to answer until that fiery gaze left hers.

"You'll fly on Solstice." She answered.

The boy blinked.

"But. . .isn't that. . .wrong?' He looked embarrassed suddenly, 'I mean. . .there's a feeling. . .you get when. . .your daemon's touched. . .don't you. . .?"

Aurora smiled, understanding what he was referring to.

"Equinox is my daemon. Solstice is actually my brother's, even though she's linked to me. So I don't feel things through her like I do through Equinox."

Will nodded.

"I'd have to tell Mary and mom, though. . ." He said. Kirjava was looking rather jealously at the love Equinox and Solstice were giving each other.

"Yes. You should write them a note, telling them there is something crucial you need to do. Mary Malone will get more answers from that machine of hers, is she wishes to."

Aurora watched as Will nodded, putting a shirt on, and walked to his desk. He grabbed a piece of paper on which he wrote something.

Meanwhile, Kirjava brought him some food.

The boy ate a few cookies and got some water from the faucet in the bathroom, before walking back to his room.

"So what about food and water?" He asked, grabbing Easheatter's case and securing it around his belt.

As soon as the blade was in Will's hands, Solstice and Equinox looked away from each other and hissed ferociously. They bared their fangs. Aurora scratched their heads and calmed them down.

"Our journey has only begun. We will get food there where the blade will be forged." Aurora walked up to the window.

Equinox ran to it, leaped out, and disappeared from view. Will gasped; but seconds later, a half-horse, half-eagle gray creature roared as it flapped up to window.

"What the hell is that thing?" Will asked, eyes wide, as Solstice joined her love, turning into the same weird beast.

"That's a Hippogriff. It exists in another world." Aurora explained simply as she jumped out to Equinox, grabbing the feathers of his neck to hoist herself onto his back.

Will walked up to the window, and looked down with a gulp.

Solstice came near cautiously.

Kirjava jumped out the window, and landed softly on the hippogriff's back. Will managed to get his hand on the beast's neck, feeling awkward that he was touching a daemon. But his mind demanded full concentration, because just getting on the half-horse was one hell of an exploit.

He grabbed the feathers, but made Solstice whinny when he pulled a few out.

Kicking off from the window, he got onto the daemon's back, placing his knees in front of the wing joints, so he held on with his legs.

As soon as he grabbed a fistful of the feathers with one hand, and held Kirjava with the other, the Hippogriff flapped its wings twice, and they rose into the airs with amazing speed.

Cramped, Will almost fell off, but managed to stay on Solstice's back as they caught up to Aurora and Equinox.

"So how does it feel?" Aurora asked with a laugh.

Her cape was blown by the wind and Will saw her thin figure, clothed in black silk, and the leathery case containing a blade much bigger than his own; probably Forseti.

"Uhhh. . .scary. . ." He admitted, yelling over the wind. They were now above the clouds and Will found it hard to breathe.

But he scowled, determined to do whatever to save Lyra from Aurora's brother.

(0)

That's it. . .I'm done here. Reviews appreciated.

Oh, and Quizgirl, the Hippogriff was just for you. : )

Glassflower: Oh, thankyou, thankyou, thankyou, thankyou, THANKYOU! Your review just mad me blush a bright pink. I'm so happy to hear that, because I was just wondering if my story fit in right with everything. And usually, I make the characters OOC, and it really sucks, but I'm happy to hear I've got their personality. And this so just such a huge compliment you're giving me, cuz I'm an author (to be) and stuff so it's just great to hear that from someone. And I'm super happy to hear that you think Aurora's story ties in well. I was going for that, and spend , three days reading over parts of the books to get my facts right.

Quizgirl: Thanks for your review. Well, my book as about this war that happens in an unknown time (close future). It's about this girl who starts to fight the war very soon, as a child, and lives her life fighting. That's all I cam say, cuz its really pretty much of a secret from that point on. I live in mighty Canada, land of Snow. Ps: We do NOT live in igloos. Lol.

Kaiame: Thanks.

Cel: Thanks for your review, and I'd thought I'd answer to the three 'problems' you've found.

First, I'm actually not sure if they come from the same world. At some point, someone (Serafina, I think or John Parry) mentions that Lord Asriel is from Will's world. I'm sorry if I got it wrong, but my story wouldn't work otherwise. Anyway.

Second, yeah, I know I spelled it wrong. Just so everyone knows, its not Easheatter, but Aesahaettr. I just didn't have the book and couldn't find the right way of spelling it, so I went with what I could remember. Sorry again.

And third, it's not true that daemons only change when lovers touch each other's daemons. The book says many times that around the age of puberty, daemons pick their own form, when the kids become more mature. And puberty is around eleven-thirteen. It's not because Lyra and Will made their daemons stay in one form by that way, that it works for everyone.

Thanks for your review, and I hope I clarified a few things.

Next chapter, Will meets Charles, and discovers just how dangerous Equinox can get. Will that make him doubt Aurora's plans? And will he allow Easheatter to be forged? And what about Aurore?


	9. Suspicion

Equinox neighed wildly, throwing back his eagle head as his wings flapped at his side.

Solstice was following, head bent against the wind as Will struggled to stay on her back. It was hard, considering the fact he had to hold Kirjava with one hand, while gripping the feathers of the Hippogriff's neck with the other. And now, after many cold hours of flight, he was numb in the hands, and it was getting harder with each flap to keep holding on.

Aurora didn't seem bothered by the cold; in fact, she was resting against Equinox's neck, buried in his fur, and looked like she was sleeping.

Will judged it was perhaps better if he mimicked the way she was laying on her daemon. He bent forward, placing Kirjava in between his stomach and the back of Solstice's neck, tucking the daemon in so she couldn't fall.

The cat relaxed slightly, feeling safer. Will then put his hands around the creature's neck, burying his frozen face into its feather's. Immediately, he felt soothed, warm. But he was careful not to drift to sleep, because his grip would surely loosen and he might fall.

The boy shut his eyes and wished the trip were over.

But little did he know, that while Aurora did the trip in one day, just barely, it might take them longer, considering that they would have to stop on the ground for Will to rest.

The boy wished again it could be over.

He could almost swear he heard a voice wake up in Easheatter. . .but maybe it was just the wind. . .

(0)

Lyra walked down to the dining hall, starved and sleepy, since wasn't able to fall asleep after that dream about Will's death. It haunted her, and Pan, who hadn't even seen it, also felt terrible fear. Was it because the dream confirmed their fears, or because that white wolf at the end seemed so very real?

The girl shook her head, blond hair flying, and entered the kitchens. She proceeded with searching the pantries as Pan made sure no one was coming. But it was early; no one was as much as awake.

A pleasant breeze flew in through the window as Lyra found some brown bread, and lightly melted butter. Smearing the beige grease over three pieces of bread, the girl walked calmly to a table near the open window, and flopped down.

Pan jumped onto the table, and she gave him half of one of her breads. He started to eat quickly, chewing on the slightly soggy breakfast as fast as he could, before quickly returning to the door to see if anyone was coming.

But just as Lyra finished her last toast, a white little bird landed on the window's edge. She ignored it, since it was not so unusual to see birds so close to people.

But it was only when Pan leaped on her lap, and his fur rose as if he was menaced, that she noticed something strange; the bird, which was a little albino blue jay, was carrying a piece of rolled-up parchment.

It whistled, shaking its head, and dropping the parchment as it opened its mouth. The girl picked the paper up and was surprised to notice that the bird had not yet left. She unrolled the letter.

Lyra, if you wish to get answers, follow Tenebrus. He will lead you to me. That's where the letter stopped.

Lyra blinked, wondering whom Tenebrus might be. She gave quite a jump when the bird beside her spoke.

"I'm Tenebrus." It answered her.

Immediately, it glided down onto the table, and seeing how Pan was about to attack it, the human-less daemon changed into a pine marten, mimicking Lyra's daemon.

Pan looked shocked, and but Lyra was even more; this daemon had no human, meaning they had gotten separated. Horrified, she wondered if it had been like the kids of Bolvangar.

"No. My human walked through the Desolation, which is where the witches separate from their own daemons. But that was long ago. . . but that isn't important. What is important is that you follow me." Tenebrus answered her unasked question.

Lyra blinked.

"Where am I supposed to follow you to?" She asked, quite curious. Pan, who was now hiding in her hair, nibbled her ear in warning, but she ignored him.

Tenebrus bowed his head.

"My human wishes to speak to you. He is out of the city. I know you may not trust this odd encounter, so my human decided it would be alright for you to bring any weapon of your choice to defend yourself if you think you might need to." The daemon changed successively into a butterfly, weak, defenseless, then into a mosquito, invisible and quick and finally back into the pine marten.

Lyra bit her lip, just as Pan bit hard into her ear.

"Pan!" She yelled, shaking her head. Her daemon gave her a meaningful look before jumping down to the ground.

The girl turned back to Tenebrus, who was patiently waiting for an answer.

"I'll go (Pan looked at her with wide, warning eyes), and I won't bring anything. I don't need weapons to fight anyone. And if your human has answers, I think he's worth a bit of trust. . .but just what is his name? And can you read thoughts? Since you answered my unasked questions before. . ." Lyra looked more curious than anything.

The other daemon smiled.

"Yes, I can read thoughts. But only the ones 'on top', shall we say. Because a mind is a complex thing; thoughts aren't always accessible, since they are mostly hidden. I do not know your past, or any of your secrets, because they are buried. But I can hear random questions or remarks you may pass in your head. They are thoughts you do not have control over, so they are easy to read." Tenebrus answered matter-of-factly.

Pan made a hissing noise, and Lyra sent him a glare.

"But you didn't answer. . ." She started.

"Aurore Borealis. His name is Aurore." Tenebrus completed.

Pan had a bad feeling about this. Just like Lyra, he knew this daemon was the one belonging to the caped figure, and the one that could change into a dragon.

But unlike Lyra, that did not reassure him.

(0)

Will had long since fallen asleep. Aurora noticed how he seemed exhausted, yet handsome, asleep on the back of her daemon, nuzzled in its feathers.

Equinox softly pointed out that she could use magic to get them to the temple faster, and she considered this; after all, every second counted. She had a vague feeling that Aurore was planning something.

The girl sighed, before searching her memory for a quick spell she had learned in another world. Even if she didn't have the power to do instant spells, like her mother, witch of Lyra's world, she had entered once an Earth very similar to our own, but different all the same.

At first, she had thought that the window she crossed didn't lead into another world at all; it looked exactly the same. But then she met witches –men and women- who used the elements to do all sorts of things for them; give them warmth, food, wood or make them travel faster.

And strangely enough, even though those people possessed such amazing powers, they knew nothing of wars. They didn't even know what fighting meant. The only living creature they had ever killed was a pig, and they even begged the animal to forgive them for doing so; there was a whole ceremony before the beast's death. It was nothing like Lyra's or Will's worlds.

And Aurora was desperate to keep this world the same, without intruders. She was already afraid someone might have entered the place and stared fights. So, the men and women promised her she would learn their spells and share their powers if she could close all the window, which they found very scary, that lead to other worlds.

Aurora spent ten years making sure no windows remained. The last one open was high in the sky, and it was there to let her out when she was done. She would close it after.

A great witch-man taught her how to call upon the power and use them. But she could only stay a few months, because both Equinox and Solstice were very sick.

The two daemons would have left for their world to heal, but with all the windows that were open, in all the different worlds, there were many chances they would get lost and never find Aurora again. And that was something she just couldn't bare.

So the girl learned a few spells, and with many thanks, the witch-people let her go, and she flew off into the sky. Passing the last window on this world and closing it behind her.

The girl took a deep sigh, and focused on calling the wind God, Sabat.

"Sabat, God of Wind,

May your powers search within.

Search inside of me and you'll see

I need your help; I aren't lying to thee.

So Sabat, God of Wind,

Lend me your power,

Lend me your skin." She chanted. Immediately, the wind rose and both daemons adjusted the position of their wings so they could be carried by the waves.

They surfed the skies.

(0)

Kirjava heard Aurora chant something, and right after, a power wind rose like a fury of waves on the ocean. The cat snuggled against Will, who was sleeping deeply, exhausted, with his arms latched around Solstice's neck.

She had been struggling to stay awake, by fear of falling. Just imagining how high they had to be made her shiver and close her eyes.

She buried her muzzle in the Hippogriff's feathery neck, hoping this could all be over as soon as possible.

(0)

Will wasn't dreaming. He was sleeping a dark, restful sleep. It did him some good, since he felt so very exhausted.

But suddenly, the boy's stomach gave a jolt, and he sat up on the daemon with a jump. Kirjava planted her claws in his lap, terrified, as the ground came rushing towards them.

Had they fallen? Will, tiered and still sleepy, was confused and this raised his panic to a high level. He gripped Solstice so tightly around the neck that the daemon gave him a warning beat of her wings to the head, telling him he was chocking her. The boy let go slightly, as the ground go closer still, but after seeing the daemon was still in control of the situation, he relaxed.

With a mighty swish of her wings, Solstice landed on the ground, and with the help of her wing, Will and Kirjava got off her back. Aurora joined the two, and Equinox let her off.

Both of the girl's daemons turned into snow leopard and bumped their heads together lovingly. Kirjava glared at them.

"We're here?" Will was stunned. It was barely after noon, and it seemed to him that Aurora herself had taken much more time than this.

"Yes. I used a spell to raise the winds and that got us here very quick.' And seeing how Will was about to ask her why she didn't do it when she did the voyage alone, since it could have given them a head start on her brother, she continued. ' But it's a tiring power. I can't use it many times in succession."

Will frowned and turned around, looking at the large stone temple they were facing.

"Is that the place we're going to forge Easheatter at?" He questioned. Aurora nodded and started to walk up the stone steps that lead to the entrance.

Her daemons walked in front of her. Both had turned into ravens, and flew through the door when she opened it.

Will stayed speechless when he entered: the ceiling was as high as that one a cathedral, and everything was made of stone. There were pretty, colored windows on both side of the room they had entered.

And to the very ceiling rose shelves upon shelves of books. Only very tall ladders could reach those at the very top; Will squinted, since the confound darkness of the ceiling stopped him from seeing the very top of the room.

He snapped out of his amazement and followed Aurora as she walked through rows of desks, all of which had a man reading or writing on it.

The girl reached a young-looking man who was hunched over a pile of parchments and was scribbling furiously on them. Equinox swooped down on the man's daemon mouse, warning him they were here, but he didn't harm the little creature.

The man, stunned expression on his slightly wrinkled, yet rather young face, turned around and recognized Aurora immediately. His mouse daemon scattered into his sleeve.

"Charles is in his room. He's furious at you." The man whispered before the girl had even said a word. She nodded, looked over at Will, and walked to a wooden door at the end of the room.

The boy and all three daemons followed.

Aurora pushed the door open, walking in furiously into the room. The man sitting at the desk looked up, and after a brief cower, he suddenly stood.

Both Solstice and Equinox ran into the room, changing into lions. Both roared so loudly the temple trembled. The men in the other room looked at each other and suddenly got up, running out.

Charles had fire in his eyes, and Aurora glared.

"I have brought the boy." She told him, as calmly as he could. The man's white cat daemon hissed at the lions, standing on the man's dimly lit desk.

"I. . .I- I absolutely refuse to forge Easheatter." Charles stuttered.

"I see you've given it thought. . ." Aurora smirked, just as Will squeezed past her into the room, his daemon right behind him. Charles's scared, yet furious eyes shifted onto him.

"The boy doesn't even have daemon. . ." He said with disdain.

Kirjava walked in, hissing insanely, glaring at both the man and his daemon. Charles's eyes flashed, but he said nothing, and his furious gaze shifted on the girl.

"You will forge the blade, Charles." Aurora snarled. Will looked at her, stunned. The rage that had just come out of her voice was so deep and cruel he felt it impossible for a living being to be able to feel such fury.

Charles brought himself to full height, and his daemon jumped onto the ground, hissing, fur puffed up, as it tried to make itself bigger than it was.

"I ABSOLUTELY REFUSE!" He roared.

At that moment, Equinox growled as the cat. It snarled back, warning it.

The large lion's eyes became slits; and before anyone knew it, its paw collided mightily with the cat daemon. Charles fell to the ground, screaming in pain, as the cat went flying into a wall, just as it had two days ago, when Aurora came back for the first time.

Will gasped, Kirjava gaped and Solstice head butted into her mate, reprimanding him. But Equinox raised his head high and roared.

And Will, who had almost never heard him, was surprised how much his voice was deep and wise.

"This is what we are capable of, Charles. You have lied to us, and it is your time to buy yourself back. You will forge the blade, and you will remove its tip, placing it on Forseti." The daemon turned around, and Will scrambled out of its way, terrified. Kirjava, for what might be the first time ever, felt real fear. She hid behind Will, and Equinox walked out, as Charles, groaning, crawled over to his wounded daemon.

Aurora briefly told Will she needed to talk alone with the man. The boy nodded, and stepped out, along with his daemon and Solstice.

"Is he always like that, Solstice?" Will asked.

The lion daemon turned into a rabbit. "Yes."

And she skipped away to Equinox, who had gone outside. Will suddenly had a doubt; what if Aurora wasn't trying to help him? What if her brother was actually the good guy?

Unsure, the boy turned to his own daemon. But it had walked away, and looked back one last time before it walked outside.

"That could have been me. . ."

And Kirjava left, leaving Will alone as he struggled to understand what was going on, and whom he had to trust.

(0)

TATA! How was it? I fought through hell and high water with this one. Now, on with the reviews!

Quizgirl: I'm honored you feel honored: ) Yeah, I was considering doing a crossover, but I seriously suck at those so I chose not to. And sorry, he didn't leave in his boxers, but in pants. . . ( wink, wink).

Kaiame: I'm not sure if there are going to be angels in this one, but if there are, they'll be slightly different. And yes, this story was originally going to be about the Republic of Heaven (it was called La Republique des Cieux at first, which is French for the Republic of Heaven), but finally, the plot wasn't good enough and the story would have sucked, because it would have been kind of cheesy.

As for Mrs. Coulter and Lord Asriel, we just might hear about them. . . (hehehe).

Amazin angel: I'll keep writing until my fingers turn into dust! Thanks.

Kaisermonkey: Thanks! It's great to see new people are reading this.

Next chapter, the blade is forged, while Will has some more doubts about Aurora. Who can he trust? Lyra FINALLY meets Aurore. . .and what does she find out? That he's actually trying to help her! All this and more on the next chapter of Lyra's Dust!


	10. Aurore

"I'm telling you this is a bad idea. . ." Pan repeated as they crossed Jordan College's front door. Lyra sighed angrily, and looked at the empty street; half an hour had passed since she had met Tenebrus, and had told him she would come with him to Aurore.

Now, the girl was dressed, and had some water in a small backpack, in which she had also put the aleithiometer. She checked around her, looking for the albino blue jay that was the unknown man's daemon.

"Lyra!" A voice called.

The girl and her daemon looked up and saw the little white bird on a streetlamp's tip. It fluttered down and changed into a gray, shaggy dog with a pained expression.

"I'm ready." Lyra announced, even though it seemed obvious. Pan narrowed his eyes, but otherwise said nothing. The gray dog nodded.

"Let's go then. It's about an hour from here, if we walk a normal pace." He said, turning around and walking away.

Lyra jumped the few stone steps and onto the street, before following Tenebrus.

Pan shifted uneasily, desperately trying to make her understand this was no good, but he knew all she would do was ignore him. He wondered, for a split second, if Will listened to Kirjava.

(0)

"Kirjava, listen. . ." Will walked out of the temple after his daemon.

The cat sat down and sighed, well out of earshot of the two other daemons.

"No, don't worry. I'm acting up, that's all.' She looked up at Will. 'But I'd wish you'd be more. . .careful. . .I know Aurora is trying to help and all. . .but. . .just be careful, Will."

The boy smiled, and scratched her ear.

"Will do."

(0)

"Charles, I hope we understand each other." Aurora said sternly. The man got off the floor, his frightened daemon in his arms, clutching his chest with its small claws.

"Yes. . .Yes, Aurora. But why do you need the boy so much? And the girl, what does she do in all of this?" He questioned desperately.

"What Lyra does, I'm not sure. I believe, however, that she is destined to kill my brother. And he's trying to kill her. Will, of course, would never help anyone unless it was Lyra, and she was in danger. That's why I needed him to know what Aurore was going to do; so I could get Easheatter's tip."

The man sighed.

"But how do you know all of this?"

"Forseti told me."

"And why does Lyra have to kill your brother?"

This time, it was Aurora who sighed, as she rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"You know very well, Charles, that Forseti unleashes much more power than Easheatter. That's why the second blade was created; because it released less power, and was less dangerous. It was not unable to open worlds so easily. So while Easheatter is powerless against my brother, Forseti can annihilate him. But since the first blade was built for me, I am the only one who makes it at its full might. Lyra, who I know has done many amazing things in the past, has the power to release Forseti's energy, but not at the same, high level as I. That will give her the possibility to kill my brother, but not to accidentally open a world at the same time." Aurora explained.

Charles nodded, and his cat daemon purred, feeling secure in his arms.

"But the boy. . .will he be able to see the girl again, as he wishes?"

The girl shook her head.

"I don't know. It all depends on whenever he will survive Easheatter's magic loss. . ."

(0)

"Is it still far from here?" Lyra panted. They had long since reached the outer limits of the city, and where now traveling along a steep road towards mountains. Vegetation around them was dense.

"No. It's just ahead." Tenebrus, now in a wolf form, answered. Pan ran quickly at Lyra's side, undulating with his movements.

They crossed a stream, and reached a slightly straighter pathway. Lyra looked up, and saw Tenebrus turn to the left, and take another path that lead to the foot of a very high peak.

She followed, as Pan got back up on her back, climbing on her clothes.

"It's here." The wolf daemon announced. He had stopped in front of a cave, in which Lyra could see a faint light. She glanced inside, feeling for the first time uneasy.

Pan trembled, warning her silently and praying she would turn back. But the girl had gone to far to give up now. If this man knew something about Will, it was worth being heard.

"Lyra. . ." Pan groaned as the girl followed Tenebrus inside.

She saw a dark, caped figured sitting against a back wall of the cave. The wolf daemon walked up to it and licked its face, under the hood.

"Tenebrus?" A sleepy man's voice asked wearily. The figure shifted, and rose slowly. The wolf daemon whispered something and the man came closer to Lyra, who was just at the edge of the cave's entrance. Pan growled deep in his little throat.

"So you must be Lyra. I'm glad Tenebrus found you. My name is Aurore."

And he stepped out beside the girl, in the mild sunlight.

Still, she didn't see his face because of that damned hood. As if he had read her mind (which he quite possibly did), his pale hands reached for it and took it off.

Lyra gasped. (Note how Lyra and Will both gasp when they see one of the Borealis twins)

There stood a boy (or was it a man?), around his twenties. At times he looked slightly younger, or a bit older. Lyra told herself it was the light that was playing tricks on her.

His hair was a blacker-than-pit-black, and was cut in an uneven, yet cute manner around his head. It fell just below his ears, and a few strands got into his face.

He had shocking blue eyes, and the girl thought they would have looked cold and serious if he wasn't smiling kindly and timidly. The simple fact that he had a smile on his face made both Lyra and Pan melt, feeling trusting around him.

Aurore looked very kind, with clear intentions, but Pan slyly reminded his human of Mrs. Coulter, and Lyra was immediately back on guard.

"So what do you want to see me for, Aurore?" The girl asked, raising her head high. But to her dismay, her gaze still fled his.

"I needed to talk to you. About Will."

His voice was deep, and manly. Lyra found that she loved that about him, and quickly shook her head, to get her priorities straight again.

"What's wrong with him? She continued.

Aurore sighed, looking down. Tenebrus turned into a large python and slithered beside him.

"Lyra. . .I don't know how to tell you, but. . .your friend is in great danger. I've traveled from far to tell you this. Will, I am afraid, has fallen under my evil twin sister's charm, and she will use him to get Easheatter, the Subtle blade."

Lyra's pupils contracted.

"Is Will alright?" She demanded, desperate to know. Right now, she cursed the fact she was not able to read the aleithiometer, because it would have told her everything she needed to know about Will.

"I'm honestly not sure, Lyra. . ." Aurore sounded scared, with his contracted brow and desperate eyes. She looked at him. Pan chose that moment to warn her; who the hell was this guy to barge into her life and tell her things like this?

This made her scared look fade away, replaced by fury.

"And just why should I trust what you say?" She snarled before anything else could be said.

Aurore looked like he had expected this.

"Lyra, my sister, Aurora, will try to get Easheatter, and use him to come get you. She knows you have amazing powers, and will try to take them from you. She is very cunning; she was cunning enough to steal a man's daemon before killing him. And she kept the daemon alive, at that. My sister is cruel, evil, twisted and very dangerous. But I know a technique that can allow you to read the aleithiometer. Do you know why you can't read it anymore?"

Lyra was captivated again, like hypnotized.

"No, I don't know." She admitted softly.

Aurore nodded.

"It's because of the Dust on you. That Dust blinds you, stopping you from using that power that seemed to easy to access three years ago. But as I told you, I know a technique that will allow you to release that Dust long enough to read the instrument. It is that technique that allows me to lift the Dust on myself and change my daemon's form."

He paused. Pan gazed at the snake, as it turned into a puppy, digging the ground near the cave's entrance. He found this all very strange.

Lyra looked at Aurore, waiting for him to continue. She knew this man was trying to help her.

"Are you with me? Are you ready to help me save Will, and kill my sister?" He finally asked.

"But why do you need me? To kill your sister, I mean. . ." She wondered aloud, more to herself than to him. Fortunately, he answered.

"I need you, Lyra, because your Dust, if gathered and released suddenly, contains enough power to kill my sister. And if you want to save Will, you must kill her first, for he is under her control now."

There was silence.

Lyra was hesitating, but after all, this man was quite clearly trying to help her. And if Will was in trouble. . .

"Yeah. . .I'll help you."

Aurore smiled his kind smile, but in his mind, it was really a smirk.

(0)

Will threw stones into a nearby pond, back rested against a stone pillar, Kirjava running around, racing with Solstice. The two daemons had become very friendly, even though Equinox stayed away.

Soon, soft footsteps could be heard, and Will looked up, in time to see Aurora and Charles opening the door and stepping out. The girl walked towards him, as a nervous Charles, with his white daemon, made their way to a smaller building near the temple. Equinox got up and followed the priest.

"Will, it's time." Aurora sighed as she came near him.

He got up, stern look on his face. Before she could turn away, he barged out a question at her.

"Why should I trust you?"

Aurora blinked. But she understood he had all rights of doubting her, after they way Equinox acted.

"Will, there is nothing I can do to make you trust me. You just have to make up your own mind about it. But one thing is sure; we can't go any further than this point if you don't trust me. So if you think I'm lying, I want you to say so right now, and I'll take you back home immediately. I'll try to manage without you, and save Lyra in the same occasion. But if you trust me, say it, and we'll go forge that blade and stop anything from happening to anyone at all." She told him. Both Will and Kirjava saw truth shine inside of her like a talisman, and they both smiled.

"Let's go do what we have to." The boy nodded bravely.

Aurora smiled gratefully, and turned around.

Solstice, turning into a young kitten, meowed, and got chased playfully by Kirjava.

And so, they headed towards the small, temple forge, to get a something that's been waiting to be done finally completed.

But with a hint of disturbance, Will noted the jubilation that seemed to me emitting from Easheatter as they walked towards the place he would breathe life again at.

(0)

So this is where I get to mess with your minds; now, none of you guys know who is good, and who is bad.

And since I'm so evil, I'll never tell! evil laugh

On with the reviews!

Quizgirl: yeah; who would be able to kill a Will in boxers? However, I do not guarantee Aurora actually wants to kill him, boxers or not. As for Aurore. . .do you trust him?

Faige: Thanks, it's always good to hear that kind of stuff, especially if it sounds to 'professional'. I'm glad you see my story that way. And don't worry, I'll keep writing forever and ever.

Kaiame: Its cool to know I actually captivated someone so much. And no, I wasn't thinking about the Dust when I said 'until my fingers turn to dust', but it's a good allusion to it.

Next chapter, Lyra finds out more about Aurore, and Easheatter is finally forged. But the real question is; will Will survive his blade's magic tip removal?


	11. Forge

Aurore sat back, resting his back against a tree as night set. He took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and put one in between his lips, before searching for a little black lighter in his pants. He flickered it, regardless of his two missing fingers, because of Easheatter, the flame erupted furiously, and he lit the smoke.

Taking a puff, he sighed deeply. Lyra looked at him, Pan lying at her side, on the ground. The boy had just told her his story.

Aurore was born from a witch mother from Lyra's world, and a father from Will's world. He came to life in Cittagaze with his twin sister, Aurora.

But upon their birth, the girl did something horrible; she released an amazing amount of power that shook the worlds, and she made the first ever, human-made window between the worlds.

That caused the birth of the first Specter, which killed many people.

The twins grew, and one day, scientists from Cittagaze decided to forge a blade powerful enough to kill that creature Aurora had released.

The blade, called Forseti, was meant for him; Aurore was supposed to kill the Specter. But Aurora, wanting to regain respect in the society, stole the blade and faced the monster. She killed him, but the incredible evil inside of her caused another world to be opened.

The scientists, one being from Lyra's world, took the blade back, and to assure themselves none of Aurora's evil that was now in it would be transmitted, they took off it's tip and forged a new blade. That one was called Easheatter, the killer of Gods.

When Aurora found this out, she hunted down the scientist from Lyra's world. No one knows how, but she managed to take his daemon away (it was called Solstice) and keep it alive while he died. It was believed Equinox, her own daemon, had charmed the man's daemon, and by doing so, has made Solstice's will to live so strong that not even the death of her human could bring her down.

And so, he, Aurore, faced the new Specter. He killed it, and closed the new window his sister had created. But since the blade chose him as its carrier, two of his fingers were cut off.

While he bled on the side of a road, dying and weak after his fight, Aurora came by with her new daemon, and took the blade from him. She then used it to access many worlds and steal their secrets.

Worst of all, she didn't close any windows, so her brother was forced to follow and shut them after her.

And one day, when he gained enough strength, he ambushed her and took the blade.

He took it back to the Torre Del Angeli, where he shut it in a copper box and left it. The city was surrounded in Specters, so the girl wouldn't risk getting it back.

Hundreds of years passed and he didn't hear about her.

But now, he found out she had a plan; a plan involving Lyra and Will.

According to him, she wanted Lyra's mighty concentration of Dust. But Aurore wasn't sure. So, to protect Lyra and find out the truth, he told her it was crucial she learned the technique to release her Dust, so she could read the aleithiometer again.

And so, after a long, detailed tale, Lyra was now sitting in the grass, watching the man as he manned that cigarette very skillfully with two fingers missing. The two fingers Will lost.

The two fingers that reminded her of her adventure and her love, making her heart bleed.

The girl sighed.

"So, Aurore. . .when will I learn that technique?" She questioned. Tenebrus was flying high above them, as a Peregrine falcon. The man took another puff from his smoke, before flicking it to the ground and crushing it with his heal.

"I suppose now is too late. We'd have to start tomorrow. Time is crucial right now; I have no idea how far my sister went with Will, and how soon she'll be here. But when she'll come, we have to be ready. So, do you want to stay here, or would you rather got back?" He asked casually.

The girl thought a second, but she was surprised to find she wasn't the one to answer.

"We'll stay." Pan said calmly. Lyra blinked at him; it was unusual of him to answer positively, when he was acting negatively towards a situation.

Aurore nodded.

"Great. I have a camp bed that you can sleep on. I'll take the floor. Don't worry. . .I'm used to rough conditions. . ."

(0)

Will followed Aurora into the little stone forge.

As they walked in, a powerful gust of heat hit him, and Kirjava took a step back, blinking against the vapor and warmth that had passed them.

"Would you rather stay outside with us?" Solstice questioned the boy's daemon, as Equinox threw a last glance at Miroka, Charles's cat daemon. He then came back outside, to sit near a puddle of water.

"Yes." Kirjava answered softly, rubbing herself briefly against Will's leg and then joining her new friend.

The boy looked back at her, feeling the irresistible urge to run away and never come back. But he shook his head at that; no, he had come too far, and heard too many things to return to a normal life.

"Will?" Aurora tapped his shoulder.

He looked at her. The red light from inside the forge illuminated her oddly, giving her an eerie look. But she looked kind all the same.

He nodded and followed her inside. The door shut behind him as he faced a large, blazing fire in the center of the room.

Charles was putting on some heavy gloves, clearly made out of a thicker, more resistant version of animal-skin.

"Dragon gloves.' The girl filled out for him. 'Dragons exist in another world; the same one that has griffins, phoenixes and hippogriffs. I've visited that world and brought back dragon skin. It was offered to me by the king of a pack of centaurs, for closing a window as big as three large houses."

Will looked impressed, but couldn't say anything of it to Aurora, seeing as she had moved away from him and right to Charles.

He handed her a little bag containing something that looked like leaves.

She nodded, and walked back to Will.

"I need the blade." She announced.

He quickly took the leather case from his belt, and handed it to her. She gave him a weak smile, and walked back to Charles. Will would have sworn he heard a terribly cold, cruel laugh somewhere, distantly. He wondered if it was coming from Easheatter.

Aurora returned to him, holding the little pouch with the leaves in her hand. The flicker of flames made her eyes look very odd.

"I have leaves that will allow the forging of Easheatter to the point of perfection. They are the same leaves Iorek Byrnison used to forge the blade last time it broke. But since there are less pieces this time, it will be a shorter task. I ask you to fuse the blade with your mind as we fuse it physically. Are you ready, Will?"

Silence followed that question. Was he ready? He had no idea. . .

"Yes. . ." He whispered, barely audible. But Aurora heard him, and like an old friend, put a hand on his shoulder.

"Good luck. Be strong, Will. . ."

And she turned away, as Charles brought back the blade on a steal platter, before placing it near the fire.

Suddenly, the boy wondered why Aurora knew so much about him; but he knew it wasn't the right time to ask, so he walked up to the flames and glared at them.

Yes, he was ready.

(0)

What followed was done in such a dream-like state Will could barely remember it afterwards, when he thought about it.

But he remembered how he concentrated, linking the particles of the blade as Charles fused them together, and dunked them in water, producing large amounts of vapor.

He didn't feel the heat of the flames, nor the pain in his lungs at they breathed too much hot vapor. He didn't feel his exhaustion, or his pain. All he could remember was how he concentrated, thinking of Lyra, of her face, of her love and her soft lips.

The pain in his heart was stronger than the burns of the tips of his fingers.

But Will fought, listening to the screams that he was now sure came from Easheatter, as the blade suffered and burned.

And then suddenly, the blade's screams stopped. Will saw it reflect the flames, shorter than before, but still glistering with power.

And the last thing he heard was a manic laughter than came from the blade itself, before everything went dark.

(0)

"Is he alright?" A voice asked. Will stirred, fighting the irresistible envy to keep sleeping until time died away and there was no such thing as pain and suffering.

Because the tips of his fingers throbbed, his head hurt near the temples, and he felt a rock pocking him somewhere in the back.

Someone shook him, and he stirred again. His eyes fluttered open, and the world appeared to him, with a grayish sky and blurry appearance.

"Will?" Aurora asked. He blinked harder and the world regained its focus. He was gazing up at the raven-haired girl.

"Yes?" He murmured. Memories of laughter and Easheatter's forging came back to him and he sat up quickly. This did nothing but accentuate his headache.

Aurora held him as he swayed, still on the ground. Kirjava quickly came onto his knees and settled there; Will felt how worried she had been.

"Are you alright?"

The boy looked over at the girl. Her eyes read concern and nothing else. Equinox and Solstice sat at her side, and Charles and his daemon stood a bit further away, gazing at him curiously.

"Yes. . .what happened?"

Aurora sighed relief.

"You lost consciousness after Easheatter was forged. It must have been the excess of vapor in the air; there wasn't enough oxygen and your brain didn't get enough, so it made you pass out. We got you outside right after you fell." She explained. Will nodded.

"So, what now?" He got up slowly, and found out his head throbbed a bit less when he was on his feet. Aurora stood by him, ready to catch him if he fell again.

Both her daemons became these small (if small was the word to describe them; they were bigger than anyone present) black dragons, ready to help him also.

"We should take off Easheatter's tip. . .but what I didn't tell you was. . .well, you could die if you're not strong enough. . ." She looked uneasy.

Will scowled lightly. "Why would that happen?"

"Because Easheatter has linked his magic energy to you. If you don't have the strength to withhold the rage and fury that he will throw at you during the separation, you will die."

The boy suddenly became skeptical.

"And why didn't you die when Forseti's tip was taken off?"

Aurora didn't look ever so slightly disturbed.

"Simple. Forseti isn't evil. Sure, I suffered her sadness at loosing the power, and her pain, but it wasn't evil she threw at me; it was simple feelings. Easheatter already hates you breaking him and making him ugly. He will hate you even more for taking away his power. That's why I think it would be better if you rested before we separate his tip from him; so you will be strong, and ready. Because believe me when I say, Will, I don't want to loose you." Aurora looked suddenly very old, and the boy felt sorry for her.

His hands shot out of nowhere and softly grabbed her arms.

"Don't worry, Aurora, I'll be fine. But we have very little time left and we have to hurry. I swear to you that I won't die. We have to do this, and we have to do it now."

She clearly would have protested, but knowing it wasn't her life on the line, but his, she had nothing to say in this.

Kirjava also wanted to add her word, but midway through formulating her first statement, she caught up to her senses and stayed quiet. If this was what Will's heart wanted, she would follow it to his death.

The boy nodded, and turned to Charles.

"Are you ready?" He questioned strongly, his voice vibrating with decision. The man bit his lip and nodded.

Miroka timidly followed her human's gesture.

(0)

That's it for now. I think I wrote enough, and will leave you guys hanging for now.

BTW, do you think I should have more Lyra in the chapters, or is it fine this way?

Quizgirl: Fair point. In the beginning, even I trusted Aurora. . .but now, I'm not so sure anymore. . .

Ps: The rating just might fly up a bit. . .

Snailthewhale: Thanks. I hope you get to the end of this story. I'm sure its going to be worth it.

Kaiame: Thanks. But if I don't update for a week or more, sometimes, don't be surprised; I'm either lazy, in a writer's block or going to school. This week, however, I should update at least twice, since its my March break. Or spring break. . .one or the other. . .

New chapter, Will faces Easheatter as his magic tip is to be removed. Will he survive or give in to the sudden temptation the blade throws at him? And Lyra starts her training for Aurore's technique. But what happen when she accidentally looks into his soul while doing so? All this and more on the next episode of Lyra's Dust.


	12. Easheatter's magic tip

Somewhere in the darkest, deepest abyss of the world, five creatures fell.

Two of them were obviously animals; but it wasn't all that sure, seeing as how there was no light to prove it. One of the animals, long ago, when light still touched him, had been a golden monkey with dark claws and evil little eyes. The other one, much bigger, once was a pearly-white snow leopard with dark spots all over his silky fur, a glint of mighty intelligence in his eyes.

As for the three other figures, two looked like humans. One was a woman and the other was a man. The final form, although plunged in shadows, clearly showed some strange appendages coming from his shoulders that looked like the wings of a white swan. But he, unlike the others, was also clearly dead, seeing as how he wasn't trying to fly out of this abyss.

But all that wasn't sure, since there was no light to assure the creatures were what they seemed to be. Besides, the living four of the forms had their eyes closed, and seemed to be sleeping.

But little did anyone know, they had been sleeping for a very, very long time waiting to be awoken.

For even after plunging into the Last Abyss, which had not yet been closed, Mrs. Coulter, her daemon, Lord Asriel and Stelmaria knew there was a little girl out there who would soon need their help. And they slept until she would call them.

(0)

When Will walked back into the forge, a terrible shiver ran through him, and he suddenly felt as if he was going to be sick. The boy bit his tongue and took a deep breath.

But his eyes darted to Easheatter.

He heard laughter, and for the first time in his life, he heard a voice in his head that wasn't his own.

'Will. . .Will. . .so, you have forged me again. So, you have brought me back, Will. So. . . what now, Will?' Its voice was cold, and resonated in an echo inside his head. The boy felt the blade's presence in him.

Will took a step back, horror painted on his face. Aurora turned to him, surprise on her features. But soon, that stunned look was replaced with comprehension, as her eyes also fell on Easheatter.

'Will, Will, Will. . .' The blade called him, laughing coldly.

Will swore as a terrible and sudden blast of pain crossed his entire head, and fell to the ground, hands over his eyes. Aurora fell next to him, grabbing his shoulders and pushing his hands from his eyes.

She saw through the window to his soul, as he faded, dragged deep inside of himself by the blade's voice.

"Will! Listen to me, Will! You have to fight him. You can't let him win! Please, listen to me, Will! Please! Don't give in, don't give up!" The girl screamed, watching as the boy's gaze became even more distant.

Charles and Miroka stood on the side, wondering what was going on. Kirjava suddenly came running into the forge with a cry of pain.

Her scared, strangely distant eyes scanned the dark little room, and she dashed disgracefully at the boy. But with a screech, the little cat stopped in its tracks and hissed insanely, before falling to the ground, limp, but breathing hard.

"WILL!" Aurora bellowed, and without another thought, she slapped the boy as hard as she could over the cheek, leaving a mark where she had hit him, like a fiery tattoo.

He gasped, blinked and resurfaced a moment, before being dragged into himself by Easheatter again. Aurora shouted something, but the boy didn't hear her.

'Come on, Will. Won't you use me?' The blade questioned him in his head, mocking.

'Why should I?' Will asked it mentally, fighting a bit more. But he felt lazy and tiered, and wanted this all to end right now; all the pain, the suffering, and the effort. He wanted it all to be gone, to leave him be. He wanted to shut his eyes and let that frightened picture of Aurora that floated before him fade away into nothingness.

'Because I am yours. Use me, Will. Use me to be the most powerful.'

'But Aurora said. . .'

'Forget her. All she wants is to take me and kill you. And then, she wants to kill Lyra. . .'

"NO!" Will roared, pushing Aurora aside. She gasped, surprised, and fell, hitting the ground hard. Charles rushed forward to help her up, as Miroka rallied herself to Solstice, who was now a cat, to get Kirjava on her feet.

But Will's daemon suddenly screeched, and clawed at Solstice, who staggered back.

"Kirjava!" The girl's daemon shouted, a cut gleaming near its eye. That's when Equinox came in.

He leaped into the forge, a terrifying sight to be seen.

He was a large black lion, with insane, fiery eyes and a thick black mane that bristled with every breath he took. He opened his jaws, which were lined with rows upon rows of terrible, silver teeth, and roared so mightily the ground shook.

Will screamed something, halfway through being frightened, halfway through being enraged. Kirjava snarled, raising the fur on her back, as her eyes became the home of a terrible fury.

Aurora pushed Charles back, and Solstice quickly moved Miroka out of the way, holding her in her black-panther mouth.

Will moved away from them, until the small of his back pressed against the table of which Easheatter lay. His eyes were as insane and furious as those of his daemon, which ran at him and jumped into his arms, before perching itself on his shoulder like a grotesque bird.

Kirjava hissed, eyes flaring madly, as Will's hand scanned the table, before reaching the blade's handle.

"Will. Listen to me, boy. You have to fight Easheatter off. Now. You can't afford to give in. You just can't. Do you hear me, Will?" Aurora demanded, terrified at what might happen in he gave up.

But Will didn't hear her.

'Will, kill her. She wants to hurt Lyra. She wants to kill Lyra.' Easheatter chanted in his head.

The boy's face became suddenly disfigured. His upper lip curled like an angry animal's, his eyes became thin slits and his eyebrows contracted. Aurora suddenly realized that it was now or never. After this, he would be lost.

But what could she hit him with? What would be strong enough to bring him to his senses?

Solstice put Miroka on the ground, still in her black panther form, and looked over at Equinox. He growled softly at her, she blinked, and suddenly, nodded, understanding what her love wanted from her.

There was a flash of black light, and beside the black lion that was Equinox, there was a female lion in the same, pit-black color, with the same, red eyes that reflected the flames of Hell.

Aurora turned around, stunned, and her cape followed her in her movement. That's when Will dashed forward.

Kirjava leaped from his shoulder, ears flat against her head, all claws and fangs bared, as the boy bellowed, raising Easheatter, who laughed manically.

The girl, in slow motion, turned around and saw him coming.

But before she could do as much as let her jaw drop, two flashes of black dashed past her and leaped at the boy.

One being Equinox, hit the boy with his front paws and sent him to the ground. The other being Solstice, managed to open her jaw and grab a firm hold around the boy's daemon.

Will tried to stab the lion that was pinning him down, but Equinox stayed strong, holding the boy's hand away from himself.

Kirjava hissed manically, twisting one way and another, as Solstice brought her to Aurora, who just barely had the time to recover from her shock.

Charles had a hand over his chest and was gaping at the scene. It had all happened too fast for him to record everything.

'Make him remember what he is here for.' Equinox ordered mentally, still fighting Will.

At first, Aurora didn't understand, but a sudden memory of a world belonging to mulefas, in which a boy named Will and a girl named Lyra had for the first time seen their real daemon dawned on her.

She remembered how it had happened; how he daemons had chosen to stop changing.

And almost dreamily, ignoring Will's screams and Equinox's growls, she kneeled and her hand reached out towards the boy's daemon. It managed to scratch her, but she didn't feel it.

Because suddenly, her hand met the cat's soft fur.

At that moment, Equinox leaped from the boy, letting him up, and he jumped to his feet. Aurora realized the strange feeling in the pit of her stomach, caused when someone touched her daemon, had suddenly left without her even noticing it had come.

And she stroked Kirjava's side. The daemon had frozen, and was now quivering, breathing hard, looking frightened. Aurora knew it was suddenly remembering Lyra's hand in his fur, as he changed for the last time and picked his form.

Will looked like he was going to attack, but suddenly; he let out a stunned cry. Aurora let her hand drop, and looked over at him. Her daemons made her realize that if she didn't give the final blow now, it would all be useless. So she took in a deep breath.

"Remember that one night, that last night, with Lyra, in the world of the mulefas, when everything changed. Remember, because you will never forget. Remember why you are here. Remember who you are here for, Will. Remember!" She shouted, getting up from her crouched position, fists clenched, brow set.

The boy blinked, looking around, and suddenly, he screamed.

Kirjava screamed.

Easheatter screamed.

But Will was the only one to hear the blade. Not even Solstice and Equinox, who heard it when the boy didn't, could hear it now. The knife's voice resonated in his head.

Will clenched a hand over his forehead and another around the blade's handle. Aurora quickly removed Forseti from her leather case, and let the little sunlight reflect on the blade.

She felt it awaken, and felt how Forseti realized what was going on. The blade turned all her powers towards Easheatter, who started to glow.

"Hold on, Will." Aurora murmured.

She saw the evil knife shine and saw a little twinkle on its tip.

The next second, Will gasped, opening his eyes wide, and the little twinkle on the end of Easheatter let go of the blade and slowly made its way towards Forseti. The magic tip was off, at long last, and Aurora's blade longingly called to it.

And the Easheatter's screaming was gone. Will sighed relief, before dropping to his knees. Kirjava staggered to him, and both looked up at Aurora, who was gazing absently at the little sparkle that was reaching for her own knife.

Equinox roared, Solstice roared, and the girl said something, but no one heard.

Forseti emitted a strange, chilling sound, and suddenly, the spark touched its tip, and faded.

Will smiled, and passed out, knowing he had done what was needed. Aurora followed him into darkness.

(0)

"You must concentrate, Lyra." Aurore ordered.

Beads of sweat fell from her forehead and down to her shoulders. The shirt she was wearing was almost entirely soaked.

"I'm trying." She hissed back through clenched teeth, eyes shut tightly, trembling. Pan watched from the side, frowning; he had a bad feeling about this.

Tenebrus looked at the girl calmly; he could see strands of Dust detaching themselves from the girl and lashing out. It looked like the Sun releasing fiery strands of particles from itself.

But the Dust always came back to the girl. That's why Aurore was frustrated; because this wasn't working how he had planned it to work.

Because they had less time than they had expected; both had felt something about Aurora and her two daemons a bit earlier; it was like a surge of power that cursed through the worlds, all the way to them.

First, Tenebrus had felt Aurora's daemons reach a very powerful form they used only in time of crisis; it was the Dark Form. The knowledge to gather all the evil and darkness around you and morph into a dark creature came from the World of Shadow. It consumed amazing amounts of power, but transformed whoever used it into a dark, evil, and terribly strong creature.

Then, Aurore had felt how Easheatter died.

And now, he was not only nervous, but also frustrated.

And that's why he wasn't paying attention.

Tenebrus suddenly noticed how a strand of Lyra's Dust let go of her and flew at the man. The daemon was about to shout a warning, when the particles of the two humans collided.

Lyra gasped and Aurore doubled over.

Lyra saw darkness, and she felt evil and cold. She saw nothing but shadows, hate and rage. There was no good intentions, no positive thought in the place she was at. There was only greed and dark.

And she felt how something, distantly, collided with the side of her leg. It was enough to bring her back. . .

She blinked and the world returned with such speed that she felt dizzy.

At her side was a snarling wolf that had clearly butted into her leg ragefully, throwing her to the ground. Pan came running at her, staying well out of range of the wolf.

"Tenebrus!" Someone yelled.

Lyra looked up and saw Aurore as he came near, menacing. The wolf snarled at him too, but turned into a bald eagle and flew away quickly.

The man shook his head at it as it rose into the air with spectacular speed.

"The idiot. . ." He hissed angrily, before turning kind eyes to the girl at his feet. He stretched out a hand, and Lyra hesitated only one second, thinking of her mother with her eyes that hid evil behind kindness.

But she took the warm hand and let herself be picked up, Pan on her shoulder.

"What was that?" She questioned, confused, touching her leg, which throbbed from it's harsh contact with Tenebrus's head.

Aurore raised his shoulders.

"I think when your Dust particles met mine, somehow, you opened a mental window and saw a dark world." He answered simply.

Lyra frowned.

"But there was nothing but evil in that world! There can't possible be such a place!" She exclaimed.

The man sighed and ran a hand through his black hair.

"That's where you're wrong. There is indeed such a world, and that's where my sister had learned to exploit the evil around her to morph her daemons into extremely powerful ones. I felt her do so not too long ago." He told her.

Tenebrus came flying down and landed on a branch, turning into a raven. Pan narrowed his eyes at him.

Lyra scowled deeply.

"Why didn't you tell me about this when it happened?" She demanded, suspicious. Aurore looked uneasy.

"I'm sorry, but I didn't want you to worry." He said quietly, looking down. Lyra found he looked like a kid who did something wrong, but didn't mean to. Her hands reached towards him and set on his arm comfortingly.

"Don't worry. . .just tell me about stuff like that next time, alright? I need to know."

He smiled kindly and nodded.

(0)

Eight pages. . .wow. . .So, how was it? At first I thought I wasn't gonna write the part with Lyra, since the story was long enough already, but finally I decided to put it. That's why it's all short and stuff.

Anyway, what do you guys think 'the evil world' Lyra saw actually is?

Unnamed: Thanks.

FoxofRoses: Lol. Don't worry, it'll all become clear soon enough. You just gotta be patient.

Anotymous: Yeah, I know cliff hangers are annoying, so I'll try to minimize them. But most of the time, I put them cuz the chapter is either too long or I want to keep something secret for the next chapter. Thanks for the review; its good to see more people are reading this.

TerribleFish: Double thanks. Mrs. Parry was cool, wasn't she?

Kaiame: Yeah, I know you're confused and all. I've put an 'resume' to un-confuse you all. Here it is:

RESUME SO FAR: Aurora and Aurore are twin brother and sister. Both were born in Cittagaze, from a witch mother of Lyra's world, and a human father from Will's world. But something strange happened at their birth: there was an earthquake and all the world shifted. SO, the whole 'Dust escaping and Specters' talked about in 'His dark materials' wasn't caused by Easheatter (the blade. I know I spell it wrong, alright?), but by the birth of the twins. The first human-created window appeared and a Specter was released.

NOW, here's what's not sure: Both the twins tell a similar story of their birth and life, but what you DON'T KNOW is which one is lying. That's why this is confusing. But don't worry; at the end, everything will be revealed. Until then, you have to be patient, because I'm not even sure who will be the good guy in the end.

Nyway; hope that clarified a few things.

Next chapter, Will wakes up and a few questions are answered, while Lyra listens to what Pan has to say about all this. How much time is left? And who can be trusted in all this?


	13. Answers

Lyra lay down in Aurore's camp bed. Pan jumped onto her and snuggled to her neck. Together, they sighed, relaxing after this strange day. Night had just fallen, and little bit of light still came into the cave.

"Wonder why Tenebrus acted like that. . ." Lyra wondered aloud. Aurore was outside, talking to his daemon, which was still frustrated about something.

"I don't know, Lyra. . .but I have a bad feeling about this. He's been acting strange for a while now. And besides, I wonder all together what that 'world' of darkness you saw was." Pan said in her ear. She nodded. She had told her daemon about world of hate and evil she had seen during training.

"I have no idea, but I have a feeling we weren't told something." Lyra shrugged.

Both stayed silent, listening to the wind outside.

"I wonder if we can trust them." Pan wondered. The girl nodded again, but a sudden idea crossed her head.

"Pan?"

"Hm?"

"Tomorrow, wake me up when the sun rises, and we'll ask the alethiometer, alright? I bet I'll be able to read an answer." Lyra sounded very decided, and her daemon nodded in her neck, before yawning an slowly falling asleep. The girl followed him into a world of dreams.

(0)

"Tenebrus. . ." Aurore sighed. The great daemon, in a bear form, growled and turned away, facing the forest and a nearby stream.

The man rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly.

"Tenebrus, listen to me. You can't act like that in front of her. She'll think she can't trust us." Aurore said firmly. The bear turned his head to him.

"I don't care about that. And you know she wasn't supposed to see 'that'. Your mind was to stay closed in all times." He pointed out severely. Aurore nodded, defeated.

"But you know we don't have time, so it isn't the right moment for these kind of behaviors. We need her to clear that Dust before Aurora shows up."

Tenebrus had to admit his human had a point, so in defeat, her changed into a snowy owl and flew to his shoulder. There, he got patted as he blinked his amber eyes.

"We must hurry." The daemon whispered.

"I know. . ."

(0)

Will shifted, groaning as pain shot through his head. For a few blissful seconds, he couldn't remember a thing; and then, everything flew back to him, passing the invisible dam that was trying to hold the memories back.

He remembered Easheatter, his voice and how he had ensnared him. He remembered how he had suddenly doubted and hated Aurora and had tried to attack her with the blade. At the thought of the two-daemon girl, Will sat up quickly, finding himself in a room filled with the light of day. He lay on a wooden bed, under two warm covers.

Then, he suddenly remembered how Aurora's daemons had transformed into strange, black lions. He remembered feeling the terrible cold and evil coming from the creatures, as they immobilized him and his own daemon.

Then, Aurora had reminded him he was trying to save Lyra, and Easheatter's voice had become weak and faded. At that moment, he had released all its energy, and the magic tip had transferred from his blade, and to Forseti.

Will swung his legs over the bed, to find he was still in the same clothes as the ones he had worn before.

He got up, swayed lightly, and took a determined step towards the door in front of him. It was ajar, and when he pushed it open, he found himself facing a dining room, filled with several large wooden tables, that was empty except for three daemons and a girl.

When Kirjava saw him, she gave a shrieking meow and lunged for him. Her claws burrowed into his flesh, and he held her tightly, burying his face in her soft fur.

He suddenly remembered that to get his attention, Aurora had touched his daemon, which was something absolutely terrible. The feeling had stricken his heart like a spear, and made him shiver lightly as he held the cat.

When he let Kirjava down, he found Aurora was looking at him with compassion and calmness. But Will felt sudden anger at the girl.

"What?" He snapped at her. She didn't look surprised about his reaction, and this infuriated him even more. He stomped over to her and dropped in the chair on her left, looking into her dark eyes.

"Good to see you're awake. You've been out all night." Aurora whispered softly, but Will

ignored her.

He glared at her. Solstice transformed into a ferret, on the table, and Equinox became an angry-looking wolverine Will knew this was one of the worst transformation a daemon could take, and it probably reflected anger that the girl felt deep inside.

"You are going to tell me everything I need to know." His gaze broke from the daemon's and returned to her. Aurora nodded.

"What do you want to know?" She asked quietly. Solstice bumped Equinox and he took a ferret form as well.

"First of all, how come you know so much about me? And about everything I've been through and done?" He hissed. Kirjava sat beside him, not expressing any feeling. She was already a good friend of Solstice and to her, her human's feelings did not reflect her own.

Aurora sighed.

"I know because I followed you. I've followed Lyra as well, before she met you. I've been at your side all along your journey, I've sent spells your way to protect you, and I've called help for you when you needed it. Who do you think called the witches when the kids of Cittagaze almost killed you? I directed the winds of Lee Scoresby's balloon so he could reach Svalbard, when Lyra needed to go there. I followed you to the world of the dead. I distracted the Specters from your daemons for a few seconds when you tried to get into the mulefa's world during Lord Asriel's war. I watched over you and Lyra, Will as much as I could without directly interfering, because I knew something very few did. I knew she had to accomplish something great without knowing it, but wouldn't be able to do it alone. I knew she needed you, so I got you to her.

Who do you think that cat that led you to Cittagaze belonged to? It was Solstice. She got you into the city; she made you see the window. I watched over Dr. Malone when she entered the world herself. I did amazing travels, I followed you, and I helped you as much as I could. That's why I know so much Will; that's why." Aurora sounded slightly angry, and Equinox became a wolverine again for a few seconds, before she obviously calmed down.

Will blinked. It took him a few seconds to understand that everything she said was true; all the facts matched. As if to confirm his new discovery, Solstice came forward and changed. Will immediately recognized the cat that had showed him the window to Cittagaze, before being attacked by it's kids and finally, attacking Mrs. Coulter's daemon so he could get his blade back.

"I. . ." Will was lost for words.

Aurora shook her head. "Anything else you'd like to know?" She questioned softly.

"No. . .Yes. . .how come you didn't save Solstice when the kids of Cittagaze attacked him?" Will looked away from the tabby cat and to its human.

The girl smiled, as if she had expected that question.

"The world below was crawling with Specters. It wasn't safe for me to go there. And the Specters cannot harm Solstice, unlike Equinox, because she isn't officially my daemon. She's my brother's. It makes our relation somewhat distant, even if she is bound to me; therefore, the Specters couldn't touch her, and that's why she chose to be the one to help you. Besides, I wanted to see if you'd go and help her."

There was a silence. Will relaxed slightly, and noticed a bowl of cool soup beside the girl. He also noted how hungry he was.

As if reading his mind, Aurora pushed the bowl to him, and he dug in.

"We'll set out as soon as you're done. Forseti is ready to open worlds again." She got up, and walked away.

Will felt like asking her if she could actually read minds, but his mouth was too full.

However, he found he didn't need to ask at all; before reaching the doors that lead out of the dining room, Aurora stopped.

"Yes, I can read minds. Perhaps not as well as my brother, but I can do it. . ." She said with a grin, over her shoulder and walked out. Will blinked after her.

(0)

Sorry this is short, but next chapter, all the action starts.

Quiz girl: Yeah, there's probably something wrong with your computer, cuz that's definitely not where the chapter ends. And I've checked your story out, (I hope you got the review) and I think it's very good. You should continue it.

Unnamed: Thanks. The plot is getting thicker and thicker! And Will couldn't hear Easheatter before because the blade didn't really need him or anything, I guess. And it was pissed at him for making it ugly. But now that it's existence was at risk, it spoke to him.

Kaiame: It's good to hear at least someone isn't confused. And Asriel and Mrs. Coulter will have a very important part at the end; that's why there's here. But Shhhh! It's a secret!

Next chapter, Will sets out to find Lyra, and Aurore gets one step close to getting what he wants. . .but just what is it?


	14. The alethiometer speaks

Will finished his soup, eating up the cold dregs at the bottom, before setting the bowl in front of him. He turned to Kirjava.

"Well this is turning out to be a strange week, isn't it?" He asked lightly. The cat licked its paw and looked at him, yellow eyes glinting.

"Yeah. . .But I feel it's going to be over soon enough." The daemon answered. It then returned to licking itself, and the boy got up, stretching. He felt slightly weak, but knew Lyra might be in danger, and decided there was no time for rest.

He walked towards the large double doors, pushed them open, and walked into the study. The many priests that worked there looked up at him briefly, before returning to their books.

A young monk with a honeyeater daemon came up to him. Kirjava threw a superior look to the bird on the man's shoulder, before stopping beside Will.

"Aurora is waiting for you outside with Charles. You'll be leaving soon I expect. Good luck." The priest said quickly, smiling at the boy.

Will nodded and the man walked away, his daemon chirping on his shoulder.

Then, he made his way past the desks and dusty library, and pushed another set of doors, finding himself in the blinding sunlight.

When his eyes became used to the brightness, he blinked and saw Aurora working around two huge griffins. One was silver and the other, gold. When she saw him, she turned to him and smiled.

"Ready to go, Will? We'll have to open a window in the sky, because it'll give us the time to kill the Specter that comes out of it, before it reaches the ground." Aurora told him, tying something that looked like a bundle of blankets to the silver daemon, which was Equinox.

The golden griffin roared, shaking its head, and bent its knees so Will could get on her back. When Solstice got back up, Will found he could hold on to a rope that had been tied around the creature's neck.

Kirjava joined him and he got a good grip on her, before watching Aurora as she mounted Equinox.

Before they left, Charles came running to them.

"Boy, you forgot your blade in the forge yesterday! I know it may not be able to open worlds anymore, but it can still cut through anything. It might be useful." The old priest said as his daemon looked carefully at Solstice's claws.

"Thanks." Will took the blade and inclined his head.

Charles nodded, and at that moment, Equinox spread his wings and leapt into the air. He roared terribly and flapped upwards.

With an unseating buck, Solstice spread out her own wings and followed the other daemon.

"Bye, Charles!" Aurora shouted as they rose into the air, faster than the eye could register.

Charles nodded again and Miroka, his daemon, meowed, happy that the angry Equinox was gone. She had never liked him.

(0)

"Lyra!" Pan whispered urgently. The girl groaned, trying to cover her face, but her daemon bit her hand as she did that.

Therefore, she was forced to open her eyes and look into Pan's glinting optics, which were an inch from her face.

"What?' She asked, her voice as quiet as it could get.

"It's morning. Get the alethiometer and let's go." Pan answered, before leaping to the ground. Lyra searched her pocket and felt the instrument in it, so she swung her legs over the camp bed and followed her daemon.

"Where are they?" She asked. By 'they', she meant Aurore and Tenebrus.

"Asleep on the floor. Hurry."

Lyra got outside, and noticed it was very early indeed; the sun was just barely rising. But there was enough light to see the alethiometer, so she walked up to a little stream nearby and settled down on a rock. Pan perched himself on her shoulder.

The girl fumbled with the silk covering the instrument, before placing it on her knees. She gazed down at the alethiometer and found herself relaxing for the first time in days. It felt good to watch the familiar object, even if she couldn't fully understand what it told her.

Right now, the large arrow was dancing from symbol to symbol, and Lyra followed its progression almost lazily. Pan watched it as well.

"Ask it something." He finally said.

The girl nodded, and slowly, unsurely, directed the three smaller arrows across a few symbols. Immediately, the big arrow started to dance at amazing speed, so quickly that Lyra wasn't able to follow it.

'Slower.' She ordered sternly. The arrow stopped in mid-track, and returned slowly to the first thing it had pointed. It then began traveling over the symbols at a steady pace.

Lyra would nod or frown at moments, and after a few minutes, she had a conclusion.

"What did you ask it?" Pan demanded when she blinked and shifted her gaze to the stream.

"I asked it to tell me what I needed to know about Aurora. . .you know, Aurore's evil twin sister. . ."

". . .And? What did it say?"

Lyra paused. She looked at the alethiometer again, as if wondering, before slowly answering.

"It said. . .well, I'm not sure, but from the sounds of it, Aurora isn't so evil at all. The alethiometer said she was helping Will; I'm sure of it. But it also added something like. . . that's she's trying to accomplish something through him, and then through me. But I don't know what that is. . ."

The girl bit her lip. There was a moment of silence.

"Ask it, then." Pan told her.

Lyra moved the three arrows and as soon as she was done, as if an invisible force was just dying to tell her something, the big arrow moved towards a symbol, faster than before but slow all the same.

Again, Pan waited for her to finish.

"It said. . .it was going to be something that would change the world. I think it mentioned the end of the beginning, but I don't know what that means. . ." She shook her head. Now, she was sure Aurore was hiding something from her.

Pan frowned. "Alright. . .that didn't clear anything up. . .but you can ask what Aurore is up to. . ."

His human nodded, but just as Lyra moved the three pointers, a voice came from behind them, making both jump.

"Up already? I didn't know you were such a morning person."

It was Aurore himself. Tenebrus wasn't with him.

"Uhh. . ." Lyra said, her heart beating. She hoped he didn't hear what they were talking about.

"Tenebrus went to hunt something. I'll start a fire, we'll cook whatever he brings back, and then, we'll get back to work. . .' Aurore said with a smile. 'And I hope Aurora isn't on her way. . ." He added a bit more darkly.

Lyra nodded, her hands quickly wrapping the alethiometer. She would ask further questions when she found time to. For now, she would have to play along, and hopefully, the dark-haired man was actually trying to help her.

(0)

Equinox and Solstice rose through the air like bullets, as Will tried to hold on as well as he could. Kirjava had huddled to his stomach, eyes shut tightly.

And very suddenly, they stopped.

The boy gasped, slipping sideways, but caught himself in time. Aurora flew her daemon up to him.

"Ready, Will? I'll have to plunge after the Specter, because it'll start falling. You just wait here, alright?"

When he nodded, she skillfully took her blade from its case and let the light reflect on it. Then, she poised it in midair, and with a last look at the boy, cut through the fabric of the worlds.

Instantly, a window like Will had seen so many, opened, and right out of it came a black, shapeless form. It tried to grip Aurora, but missed, and went plunging to the ground.

Equinox bellowed and went streaking after it, so quickly he appeared blurred.

Not even twenty meters down, Aurora caught up with the beast and drove her blade into it. With a shriek, the Specter vanished, and she returned upwards to the boy.

But new questions had awoken in him, and Will was decided not to move until he got them answered.

"Hey, Aurora! How come I never saw a Specter come out of a window like that? I've created plenty and that's never happened!" He asked. She stabilized Equinox next to him, and slapped her forehead with her hand.

"Of course! I forgot to tell you. Before, there used to be a special window in the World of the Dead, through which the Specters came out of when they were created. That window was opened a bit after Easheatter was forged, long ago. But the angels closed that window when they searched the worlds for all unnatural openings, so the Specters now appear where ever a window is created." Aurora answered. She was going to fly away, but obviously sensed Will wanted to ask something else, because she stopped yet again, halfway into the other world.

"Oh. . . I was wondering. . . how come your blade doesn't cut through the words when it just moves. . .? Because you told me it was so powerful that a simple movement could open a window. How come nothing like that happened when you attacked the Specter?"

Aurora smirked. "Forseti knows what will happen if she opens worlds whenever she feels like it. But she is wise, so she has learned from her mistakes. If once, for accidentally opening a window, her tip was taken away, she will be more careful next time. And in my hands, her power is slightly under control. That's why I need Lyra to kill my brother with her; because not only will she be able to unleash an amazing power, but she will also entierly control the desire to open the fabric of the universe, which is something I cannot do."

And the girl's daemon flew into the other world. Will had no choice but to follow.

Aurora closed the window behind them and they set off, flying at break neck speed towards Oxford, where they hoped to find Lyra.

(0)

Wow. . .I'm done here. I hope things seem a bit clearer. And good news everyone, I've finally decided who's the bad guy in the story. . .however, I'm not telling. And another thing, the story will be over in two or three chapters. . .four at the most. . .

Ellidiot: Thanks! I hope you get to read the rest.

Unnamed: Wow. . .you really want to know what is going to happen, eh? But just so you know, I post at least once a week, because I usually find time to write a new chapter. Some times, I can post two chapters a week.

Quizgirl: Indeed. However, I'm sorry to say that you're wrong about Aurora. I may have forgotten to mention it, but Aurore got a new daemon when he crossed the Desolation to see if he could get one by separating a part of himself. He succeeded, because his daemon was buried inside of himself. But that'll all be explained when Aurora and Aurore will meet, so don't worry too much about it.

And a carcajou is a very mean animal that lives in the forest. It kind of looks like a small bear. Look it up.

Kaiame: Thanks for the review. I'll write as much as I can.

FoxofRoses: Can't tell; you'll have to find out with the rest. . .

Next chapter, Aurore gets closer to his goal as Lyra unleashes most of her Dust, while Aurora and Will try to find her. They need time, but it doesn't seem they have it. . .


	15. And the Will goes on

Lyra ate the rest of the slightly burnt rabbit paw she had gotten for breakfast. Tenebrus, as a quick and agile fox, had caught two hares in the forest, and then, Aurore had roasted them over the fire.

Now, the sun was high up, and as they finished breakfast, Lyra anticipated her second day of training. She was determined to accomplish what she had to, so she could read the alethiometer at last and get a few straight answers to all this.

"Ready?" Aurore asked, getting up.

The girl nodded, throwing aside the bone, which was picked up seconds later by a hungry raven. Pan climbed her long skirt and then her slightly dirty shirt, before firmly planting his claws into her shoulder. Tenebrus followed them, as they moved away from the dying fire and towards the stream.

Aurore turned around and faced his student.

"Alright. . .so, Pan, please move aside, and we'll begin." He said, nodding lightly and the pine marten.

Lyra watched her daemon jump to the ground, and couldn't help but notice how Tenebrus, currently in a falcon form, seemed nervous. He was sitting on a low branch, stepping from foot to foot, rustling his wings restlessly. The girl tried to ignore him and turned to her teacher.

"So, do I do the same as before?" She questioned. Aurore nodded curtly.

Lyra closed her eyes, and concentrated. She visualized the golden Dust all over herself, and gathered it in three places: her forehead, her chest and her stomach. Then, she scowled, imagining the Dust was agitating itself furiously.

She let it bristle in her mind, before suddenly releasing it all.

But this time was different from the first: this time, instead of just letting go in her imagination, the Dust actually released itself from her.

Lyra gasped, eyes flying open, as a terrible cold shot through her. For a few seconds, she could actually see the Dust particles of ever living thing around them.

She saw it falling in golden waterfalls over the trees, saw it surfing the stream and saw it bristling in the wind. But something attracted her attention; she turned her head to Tenebrus, and screamed.

There was a storm of Dust, swirling like a wild ocean all around the daemon. It was so thick she could just barely make out its falcon form.

Then, she turned to Aurore and saw he had the exact same torrent of golden particles flying around him savagely.

Pan came running at her, crying her name, and saw he was also covered in same, terribly thick storm of Dust. But then, Lyra felt heavy, as if she weight as much as the world, and she fainted suddenly.

She didn't see the victorious smirk on Aurore's face, as he came running to see if she was alright.

(0)

With a roar, Equinox pelted through the air, Solstice following him closely. Will was lying on the female daemon, hugging Kirjava, praying he would survive this, as Aurora rode her own beast with absurd ease.

They were buffeted slightly by a gust of wind, and Will felt his heart skip a few beats. They had been flying like this for the past three hours, and still, sudden changes of movement like these scared him a bit.

And very suddenly, both daemons stopped in midair, flapping their huge wings as hard as they could to slow down. Will dared to open his eyes, and before they disappeared into the trees of a dense forest, he saw what was unmistakably Oxford, a few decencies before his time.

But then, the trees hid the city from view and they landed heavily onto the pine-covered ground. Aurora sighed softly, as the boy rested his head against the griffin's neck, relaxing.

"Will. . ." Aurora was going to say something, but just then, she stopped abruptly and looked up. The boy sent her a look, raising an eyebrow.

"What's wrong?" He followed her gaze into the air, but didn't see anything in particular.

Aurora was frowning deeply, following something invisible in the sky. Will waited for her to talk again, knowing something important was happening that he could sure not see. The girl suddenly looked over at him.

"We must hurry. My brother is a step closer to getting what he wants." She told him.

Will blinked. "How do you know?"

Again, she looked at the skies.

"I see Dust, unlike most people. So does my brother. Both you and Lyra have a very high concentration of the particles, and so do Aurore and me. Therefore, if any change happens to that concentration, say, that it is released suddenly, all the Dust of the world reacts to that. You can't see it, but the particles that drifted in the sky slowly suddenly flew towards one direction like a torrential river. I think my brother managed to get Lyra to release a bit of her Dust."

Will scowled.

"Is she alright?"

Aurora looked surprised for a moment, and then she smiled.

"Yes. The Dust in the skies is flowing normally now. I think she regained control of it. However, I don't know how long it will take for my brother to fully accomplish what he wants, and that's why we must hurry. We'll travel through Oxford on horse, and maybe someone will be able to point us to where Lyra is."

As if on cue, Equinox and Solstice transformed into two, jet-black horses, and slowly started trotting towards the city, which was dead ahead of them.

Will was worried, but not worried enough to be able to ignore the fact he was now almost galloping on a horse with no saddle.

(0)

Deep inside the Abyss, a pair of eyes opened. Stelmaria looked up at the darkness, which they had been falling through for years, and scowled.

"It is almost time. . ." She growled.

And then, her eyes closed, and she went back to sleep.

(0)

Aurora's two daemons galloped full speed through the forest, dodging trees at a frightening speed.

Trying to ignore the pain that settled itself around his crotch area, Will held on to Solstice's wild mane with one hand, as he held on to Kirjava with the other. His eyes were tightly shut and he tried to fight off the sick feeling he had in his stomach from this journey.

But at that very moment, the feeling in his stomach faded as the two horses slowed down slowly to a walk. Will dared open his eyes and saw they were emerging from the forest, and walking towards a path that obviously lead to Oxford, which lay about a mile away.

Aurora pulled Equinox back and walked next to the boy. Will sat up straight and shifted with a grimace, letting Kirjava down from the horse so she could walk beside them.

"How's it going?" The girl asked, smiling in a pitiful way as Will groaned, trying to sit down more comfortably on the beast's back.

"Well, honestly, I think I'm sterile now. And I don't think I'll ever ride a horse again." He sighed, placing himself crookedly on Solstice's back. The daemon neighed, as if telling him it was his own fault he couldn't ride properly.

Aurora tried to suppress a laugh but failed miserably, and burst out laughing as Will sent her an annoyed look.

"It hurts, alright?" He said shortly. The girl stopped laughing and tried to keep a straight face.

"Don't worry about it. We'll reach Oxford soon enough, and then it's just a matter of time before we find Lyra." The girl told him, nodding.

Will sent her a grave look.

"But just how much time do we have?"

Aurora didn't answer, and bit her lip.

(0)

OMG, I got so many reviews! Thanks guys!

Anotymous: You're welcome. I actually forgot that Dust leaked into the abyss. But hey, they had to get to Lyra's world somehow.

Rozie26: Thanks!

Lobsstaceyters: Hope you read the rest. Thanks for the review, and about Aurore, you're on the right track.

Rj: Thanks. I agree that Pullman's ending was bad. It just get me really frustrated, because that's not how I wanted it to end. But I'll let you in on a secret: I found a solution to the fact that Lyra and Will can't see each other. It'll be mentioned at the end of this story, and it will be subject of the sequel. Yup, I'll do a sequel.

HiPaul736: Will do. I didn't know that mulefas was the plural of zalif, so thanks for pointing that out. Keep reading!

Unnamed: Sorry, but there are just about 4 left. However, I'll a sequel. So watch out for that! I'll start working on it as soon as I'm finished with this.

Quizgirl: Actually, I didn't just decide you were wrong. You actually were. But that doesn't matter. As for Lyra and Will meeting, I assure you that they'll indeed see each other before the end, and they'll even find a solution to their love problem.

Kaiame: yeah, its bomb bad. Cuz if you remember, when Will and Lyra's daemons took a last form, the flow of Dust stopped. That was because their concentration of Dust was really powerful. Now, if one of them were to let go of that Dust, there wouldn't be a 'dam' holding the particles of the world, and the whole problem would start over.

Next chapter, Lyra wakes up from fainting and just refuses to quit. Aurore, meanwhile, feels his sister is close, and knows he has very little time left to accomplish what he needs to. But Aurora and Will just can't seem to find them both, even after talking to several people in Oxford. However, they get back on track and Lyra managed to release her Dust again. . .but this time, are they too late?


	16. Too late?

The sky was clouded when Lyra opened her eyes. She could see it, because she was lying on the ground, with Aurore at her side. His icy eyes were full of concern, and his brow was down, but as she woke up, his obvious fear disappeared.

"You alright?" He questioned softly, helping her sit up. Lyra sighed and Pan quickly jumped onto her lap, trembling. She felt he was scared, and even more doubtful of the raven-haired man's motives.

"Yes. . ." The girl breathed, shutting her eyes.

There was a pause, as Lyra slowly got up, clutching her daemon against her chest, their hearts beating in unison.

"I think we should stop for today." The man proposed half-heartedly. But to his surprise, Lyra violently shook her head.

"No. I. . .I have to get this done. I need to read the alethiometer." She declared, looking at him. Pan was astounded: he had clearly whispered a warning to her, telling her that this whole Dust releasing thing seemed strangely suspicious to him. She had of course ignored him.

"Are you sure?" Aurore asked after a pause.

Lyra nodded.

"But first, I want a few answers. I want to know why my Dust and yours seemed so. . .dense around us. I've already seen the Dust of another person, through the Amber Spyglass, but it's never been so thick. . .why was it with us?"

Aurore smiled.

"It's not at all that complicated. You are the reincarnation of Eve, Holy Mother, as you surely know. Your destiny was to stop the incessant flow of Dust, and the only way you could do that was by attracting, at a certain age, an immense amount of Dust yourself. As for myself and my sister, we were what separated the parallel worlds, therefore, ever since birth, we've had this many particle around us." The man explained. But another thought crossed the girl's head, at that moment.

"Wait. . .if I release my Dust, won't that start over the whole problem. Won't it start the flowing of the particles again?" She suddenly looked at him suspiciously. Perhaps it was just her imagination, but a flash seemed to pass in the man's eyes.

"No, of course not, because you'll only release it for a moment. You'll be unharmed." He assured.

Lyra nodded, and breathed deeply.

"I'm ready." She declared. Pan jumped from her arms and suddenly noticed that Tenebrus was gone.

(0)

"Excuse me!" Aurora called, bringing Equinox up to an old woman in the busy streets. Will followed her, watching the people that passed him carefully, trying to find Lyra amongst the running kids and talkative parents.

"Yes?" The woman looked up, intrigued.

"Have you seen a girl. . .like, in the last few days or so. . .her hair is blond and she had these dark eyes. Her daemon is a pine marten. . ." Barely had she finished and already the woman shook her head, walking away.

Aurora sighed, and Will brought Solstice up to her.

"And?" He asked anxiously. The girl shook her head, angry.

"No one has seen her! I just can't believe it! But I should have known. . .my brother knows how to act in secret, and get what he wants." She told him, looking around herself, as if hoping Lyra would come prancing out of a food stand.

"We could try Jordan College. I heard that's where Lyra went. . ."

"No, I doubt he'd keep her there, if he had caught her. And I know he has. . .she'll be somewhere in the city, if we're lucky. . ."

Will's eyebrow rose.

"And if we're not?"

"Then she'll be out in the wild." Aurora sighed, gesturing the forest that surrounded the city. The boy swallowed heavily.

But at that moment, when all hope seemed lost, he felt a tug on his pants, and looked down to see a young kid, no older than himself, looking up at him. Kirjava watched the boy's daemon carefully; it was a sparrow, and when it saw the cat's gaze, it quickly took the defensive form of a small snake, slithering on the kid's shoulder.

"Hey, I hear you're lookin' for Lyra." The kid said, grabbing his daemon away from Kirjava's stare.

Aurora brought Equinox around Solstice, and faced the young teen. The horse's gaze was even more intense that Kirjava's and to this, the boy suddenly took a step back, intimidated.

"Yeah, we're looking for her. What can you tell us?" The girl said in a strong voice that was soft in its own way. And her gaze was kind enough to convince the boy he was safe.

"Well, I saw her 'bout two days ago. Was leavin' Jordan, she was. Kids know her here a lot 'round here; we hear she's been far 'way and lived great things, she has. She's kind of your hero, you know. . . we all looks up to her, even if she don' know it." The boy shrugged.

"Yes. Can you tell me where she was going? We're looking for her and it's very important." Aurora pressed on gently. Will was reminded of Mrs. Coulter; so powerful and deadly, yet so cunning to get what she wants. . .

"Yeah. . .was followin' an big dog, I saws her. Looked like the Grim, you know. . .I think it was someone's daemon, but I ain't sure. . .didn't see no human 'round. . .could it have been a daemon with no human?" The boy frowned.

Will wanted to yell at him to tell them where Lyra was, and expected Aurora to do the same, but to his dismay, she smiled kindly and shook her head.

"No, daemons can't exist without humans. It was just probably a smart dog. So, where did you say she went. . .?"

The kid looked relieved.

"Didn't see her beyond that street over there, but I thinks she went for the mountains there. . .'looked like that's where she was headin'"

The girl grinned at him.

"Thanks, you were an immense help. We'll see you around!" Aurora declared.

To Will's amazement, she searched her pockets, found a silver coin, and flicked it at the boy, who grinned back and bowed his head, before running off to his friends.

"Well, Will. Let's hurry. Heavens known how much time we have. . ."

And the girl kicked Equinox, who neighed wildly and sprang away towards the direction pointed out by the kid. Will grabbed Solstice's mane with one hand, and Kirjava with the other, as the horse dashed after its human, speeding through the busy streets, where people cursed them as they sprung aside to let the two black horses by.

(0)

Lyra concentrated, visualizing her Dust in three places: her forehead, her chest and her stomach. Then, she let it boil, as if it was water, and suddenly, without any warning, she released it.

(0)

Aurora suddenly stopped Equinox, who neighed as the rope pulled on his neck. Will almost fell of Solstice as she skidded on the stone road to a stop, almost hitting the other daemon.

"What's. . ." Will grabbed on to the horse's mane and pulled himself back up. Kirjava slowly withdrew her claws from his chest, body trembling.

The boy watched Aurora, as she gazed, horrified, at a mountain just beyond the city's limit. He followed her gaze, but saw nothing there. But he knew, by instinct, that something was wrong and he'd better keep quiet. He also paid no attention to the people who were pointing at them and muttering.

"Aurora, what do you see? Is it Dust. . .?" He whispered suddenly, not liking the look of horror that had painted itself on her face.

"Lyra. . ." She whispered.

Will looked at the mountain, but he saw nothing. The girl suddenly snapped back to herself and made him jump.

"I. . . I think we're too late. . ." She said quietly, eyes fleeing him. He did a double take, and his stomach turned over.

"W. . .what?" Will stuttered.

Aurora shook her head violently.

"I saw. . .oh, God. . .I saw so much Dust suddenly spring into the air. . .if she's still alive after. . .after that, then she's at the brink of death!"

He saw tears form in her eyes.

"I won't give up!" He hissed at her, and she looked up at him bravely, nodding fiercely.

"Yes. We have to go. . .we may still have time. . .we may not be too late. . ."

And Equinox sprang forward, people dashing out of his way, and Solstice followed. All the time they galloped towards the mountain, Will prayed Lyra was still alive. . .

(0)

It was powerful, it was exhausting and it was amazing. Never had she felt so light, and in perfect tune with the world. It was as if she was everything, and everything was her.

Lyra laughed, loving this feeling, as she felt herself float in the sky. . . she wanted to tell Pan how he felt; did he feel the same way too?

But as she turned her gaze towards him, floating next to her in the sky, she saw something that truly frightened her. Pan's torrent of Dust was escaping him, and he was slowly turning golden, as if he was joining the particles.

He looked like a small cloud of smoke. Lyra suddenly understood; this was what daemons looked like when they died. . .but then. . .she was dying?

"PAN!" The girl screamed. She didn't want to die; she didn't want to be separated from him!

And suddenly, she felt herself fall, and with her fading daemon, she screamed. She felt herself enter something heavy, and found herself in her body, lying in the grass, looking up at the sky. Pan, lying beside her, returned to his solid form slowly, and crawled onto her chest, crying.

Lyra cried also, feeling exhausted and trapped inside herself.

The last thing she saw, through a veil of tears and tiredness, was Aurore as he smirked.

"You. . ." Her voice was far away, and felt strange.

And then everything was dark.

(0)

CLIFFY! Bow before the cliffhangers, for they are your masters! Thanks for all the reviews guys, you ROCK!

Anotymous: You make a good point. But I use the term 'bad guy' for every evil character, whenever it's s guy or a girl. Still, if you read the next chapter preview, you'll see who is really the bad guy.

PS: I wrote my book in English, so it'll probably get published in USA. Or so I hope.

PPS: Where you live, it's not legal to own horses? In Canada, you can, as long as you like a bit in the suburbs.

DAncerchick9293: Thanks.

Fox of roses: Of course. How could this story end if they weren't? I'd get flamed to death! ( or to Dust. . .)

Quiz girl: Thanks. As you can see, it did indeed affect pan. You kinda gave me the idea to make him 'disappear'. As for your story, you better keep it up. I honestly want to see what is going to happen. Plus, you are good at HP/HDM crossovers (unlike I).

Unnamed: Yup, there's gonna be a sequel. I'm not sure what it'll be called, but I have an idea for the title. I can't say it now, cuz it would ruin a 'surprise' at the end of this story. Thanks.

PinkExplosion. Thanks. No more than two chapters left, I'm sorry to say. But look for the sequel. I'll work on it after this.

Kaiame: I hope things are getting clearer now. It's not that hard to guess who's bad anymore. You'll have it figured out soon enough. : )

Lobsstaceyters: You're welcome. I know it was a little short, but sometimes I run out of ideas.

Next chapter, Will and Aurora FINALLY reach Aurore, and stop him from doing something dreadful. They learn that he has stolen most of Lyra's Dust, and as the siblings face each other, Will must revive Lyra, because only she can call upon the power to wield Forseti and end this madness. But why won't she wake up?


	17. The battle is on!

'Hold on, Lyra, I'm begging you; hold on! I'm coming, I'm here, and I came for you. I came because some strange girl told me you might be in danger. I followed that girl into the unknown because she said you might die. I broke our promise, but now I know she wasn't lying, so I have no regrets. Lyra, please, hold on just a bit longer, I'm begging you. Don't leave me in this world that is not mine. Don't leave me. . .alone. . .'

Will's teeth were gritted. His hands were locked in Solstice's mane. Kirjava held on to his jeans, glaring at those who passed them as they reached the outskirts of Oxford. She trembled with fear, and also with rage and many feelings she couldn't yet associate with words, through her fury.

Before them ran Equinox, strong and proud, like a black cloud with fiery eyes, and with a terrible storm of a girl on his back. The look in Aurora's eyes was frightening enough to make even Will twinge.

The two horses dashed like no horse had ever dashed before, and the foot of the mountain was coming into view.

'Hold on. . .'

(0)

Tenebrus flew down onto his human's shoulder, in a large raven form. He cawed warningly.

"She is near. I saw her in Oxford." He announced. Aurore nodded, looking down at the blond girl with a smirk distorting his pale features.

"I'm not worried: I have far more than enough strength to face her. I don't have all the girl's Dust, but what I have will do. I have no more use for her." He looked down at her coldly.

As if on cue, Tenebrus leapt down from his shoulder, and transformed into a large black panther. He trotted over to Pantalaimon, and quickly grabbed the small daemon in his jaws, careful not to hold him too tight, but squeezing a bit all the same.

Aurore reached for a leather case at his belt, and grabbed the hilt of a dagger. He pulled the blade out slowly and let it sing.

His gaze landed on Lyra's neck and he smirked wider.

(0)

Aurora and Will passed the last house of the city, and instantly, both horse daemons leaped into the air, neighing wildly, and in the blink of an eye, transformed into hippogriffs, stunning the boy.

They flapped their wings and rose quickly into the air. People below pointed up at them in awe and talked quickly together, but the riders had not even a thought for them; they simply continued towards the place where Aurora had seen the Dust flowing.

Will's knuckles hurt and the wind stung his eyes, and yet he ignored it all. Kirjava was no longer afraid of the height they were at; she simply twisted her head around to try and find Lyra.

Aurora's eyes were fixed on a spot they were quickly approaching. Her strong eyes saw the glimmer of a blade. . .

(0)

Aurore withdrew the dagger, and the light of the sun reflected on it.

He took a few steps towards the girl in the grass and kneeled next to her, dagger tight in hand, smirk revealing his white teeth.

Tenebrus growled, amused, Pan still locked in his jaws.

(0)

Aurora screamed something and both her daemons flapped their wings at an insane speed.

Will felt his stomach jolt when they suddenly did a dropping plunge towards the ground. It felt as if he had simply fallen out of the air, and Kirjava, for a moment, was scared again.

But right then, the two huge hippogriffs landed on the soft ground with a heavy thud and a wild screech. It took a moment for the boy to understand what was happening, and where they were.

He saw, in a flash, a raven-haired man kneeling near Lyra, dagger in hand, before Solstice reared on her hind paws and threw him right off. Will hit the ground heavily, as did Aurora, having been thrown off her steed, by her steed.

Amazed, Will saw Equinox leap towards the man's daemon, becoming first a sparrow to rid himself of the luggage he was carrying and the rope around his neck, and then into a large lion, taking on Tenebrus.

Solstice morphed into a lioness, and tackled the evil daemon as well. A limp form came pelting from his mouth, and it was Kirjava that realized that it was Pan. She went to fetch him quickly, and dragged him away from danger, as Aurora got up and faced her brother.

He let go of Lyra, leaving her unharmed, and got up to full height, glowing with power.

Will scrambled up as well, looking at both parties, as Equinox and Soltice backed away slowly from Tenebrus, joining their human.

"Will, get Lyra." Aurora ordered. She sounded so severe that the boy did not dare say anything. Not that he had anything to say.

He slowly walked up to the girl, who lay in the grass between both parties, and grabbed her around the waist. His eyes never left the man and his daemon, and theirs never left him. Will was stricken to see how much Aurore looked like his sister, considering he was evil.

He picked Lyra up, and since she was very light, he had quickly gotten her back behind Aurora.

"Wake her up." The girl ordered, glaring at her brother, who continued smirking. She undid the leather case containing Forseti at her belt, and threw it behind her, for Will to catch. He did, and laid it down beside himself, knowing he would have to give it to Lyra and explain a few things to her when she woke up. She would have to know she needed to call on her powers to use the blade on Aurore.

Will shook the girl, as Kirjava licked Pan's fur, trying to wake him up. But neither would budge. They were breathing all right, and their hearts were beating, but they seemed to be in a kind of a coma.

As he tried to wake her up, Aurora at long last faced her brother.

"This is where it ends." She told him calmly.

Aurore smirked.

"Oh really? I think not; my power is far stronger than yours, and I can easily defeat you. I have the upper strength here." His eyes twinkled insanely.

"Perhaps. But my strength is my own, and it is pure. And that is far more than anything you can ever have, because you are stained and consumed." She answered.

His glare became harder and his lip curled, showing his teeth.

"So we shall see."

Tenebrus bucked, roaring, and a great light of black exploded around him. There was a huge wind, and for a moment, Will saw the Dust of the world: he saw it just as Lyra had a few hours earlier.

And the golden Dust that swirled insanely around Aurore and his daemon suddenly became black, and concentrated around Tenebrus.

And then, his sight returned to normal and what Will saw truly scared him: there was a huge, morphed wolf where the evil man's daemon should have been.

It stood eight feet tall, on its hind paws like a human. Its great head was adorned with mighty horns and long blades had burst from his shoulders. The wolf's hands and feet were large in comparison to his body, and tipped with deadly claws. He pulled his head back, black mane rolling and bellowed so loudly the mountains quivered.

Equinox and Solstice also exploded in black light, transforming into large wolves of black, and yet, their huge power did not match Tenebrus's, and they were not morphed like he was.

But that did not stop them from striking with all their might, for their human and for Will. Equinox flew through the air at Tenebrus, but the large beast knocked him aside with a paw, throwing him into a large boulder. Yet this allowed Solstice to bite the wolf's leg.

The evil daemon hollered, and snapped at the female wolf, but she was already out of the reach of his jaws. Equinox came up from behind and jumped, plating his claws in the beast's back. . .

Meanwhile, Aurore was fighting his sister, who was fighting back with as much fury. She threw a punch at him, her knuckles connecting with his jaws, and he planted a kick to her hip.

He tried punching her, but she dodged out of the way and kicked the back of his leg.

Will, for his cause, was trying to wake Lyra up, yet she seemed determined not to move an inch. The boy was getting desperate, and his daemon kept licking Pan, trying to wake him. . .

It seemed all in vain.

The boy looked up and saw Tenebrus thrown Equinox off. The male wolf hit a tree and fell to the ground, yet with a pained roar he got back up, and flew to help Solstice out. Aurora fell to the ground with her brother, and both were trying to choke the other, rolling around in the dust and dirt.

He looked back down at his love, which slept soundly. He didn't know what to do, as the battle raged around them.

(0)

Ok, I know you hate me all now. But I just have to stop here, to leave the final scene for the next chapter. It's very long and possibly very touching, therefore, it stays a secret until its reveal. Please forgive me.

I'll try to post sooner so you don't want to hurt me too much.

Unnamed; Actually, they aren't exactly releasing their Dust. That'll be explained in the last chapter. Thanks for pointing it out, though.

FoxofRoses: Lol.

Lobsstaceyters: You're probably gonna hate me for stopping here, then.

Ellidiot: Even more suspense coming up!

Kaiame: God, you are just gonna flame me for this chapter! I'll go hide in my hole.

Next chapter, Lyra finally wakes up and in the heat of battle, Will tells her what she has to do. And yet, she feels she has failed them and been a fool and brought him into danger with her own stupidity. . .will Will be able to convince her otherwise, before time runs out?


	18. The golden bird

He looked back down at his love, which slept soundly. He didn't know what to do, as the battle raged around them.

And then, an insane thought crossed his head. It was so stupid and crazy it might even work.

With the symphony of roars and groans that lifted the air around him, Will slowly lowered himself to Lyra's face. His hair fell in front of his eyes and tickled her features, as he slowly closed his eyes. Kirjava stopped licking Pan and looked up at him, as the world around them slowed down, until it almost stopped.

There was not a sound, except for the ominous beating of the two lover's united hearts, and Will's quick breath.

Then, in an explosion of lights, his lips touched hers and pressed together tightly, as if trying to lock out the evil and pain around them. Will kissed Lyra, at last doing what he had dreamed about for the past three years, letting the craziness of it all surround them both.

Then suddenly, his lips let go, screaming to return, and everything sped up again, and all the sounds came back. Somewhere, Equinox snarled and Solstice whined softly, as Tenebrus bellowed.

Will opened his eyes, still inches from Lyra's face, and saw her dark optics gazing into his lovingly.

"I heard your call, Will. . ." She whispered. He smiled and felt tears sting his eyes, but quickly blinked them away. He sat up straight again and saw Kirjava and Pan embraced tightly.

Gently, he helped Lyra sit back up, and saw she swayed a little. Her gaze shifted slowly to the battle around them, and she seemed veiled with sorrow.

"Will, I was so stupid to trust him. . .I should have known! And Pan was warning me about it since the start!"

Pan gave her a meaningful look but left it there, forgiving her. He returned to licking Kirjava's fur with great care.

"It wasn't your fault. I was no one's fault, but Aurore's. But that doesn't matter; we'll talk about all that later. Now, you need to take this, and do as I tell you. You need to call upon all the powers you have, and unleash them into the blade. It will guide you to your goal, which is killing Aurore." He handed her the leather case containing Forseti, but she didn't take it. He lowered the holder to his lap and looked at her.

Lyra looked back at him, shaking her head.

"I've already failed in seeing through him, Will. I don't want to fail against him again." She said sadly.

Aurora bit her brother's hand, and started to show signs of tiredness that Will could see. He knew they had no time for this, so in a final and desperate move, he suddenly put both his hands behind Lyra's head, and pulled her in.

Their lips connected softly, and he kissed her passionately, holding her against him with all the love of the world. Then, with certain regret, he let her go, and they gazed deeply into each other's eyes.

"You won't fail." He told her in a voice so confident she couldn't contradict him. Again, Will handed her the case, and this time, Lyra took it, drawing out Forseti. She gazed at the blade in awe, for it was beautiful, made of silver and threaded with gold, with the light reflecting in it like a rainbow.

But she hesitated, looking back at him.

"What powers do I have?" She asked, frowning. Will realized he didn't know, but just then, with a terrible roar, Solstice came flying at them, and with a scream, they scrambled out of her way.

Lyra managed to get aside, but the daemon hit Will, throwing them both into the nearby stream. The boy pushed the lioness out of the water, and followed her. Lyra stood a few feet from the, near a tree, clutching the blade, panic in her eyes.

Will turned his head in time to see Aurore throw his sister off himself. The girl hit the ground, and didn't move.

"LYRA, DO IT!" The boy screamed, as Aurore turned his cruel eyes to them.

Lyra held up the blade and concentrated. But what powers did she have that would be enough to defeat the man?

It didn't seem to matter, because he was already advancing on Will, knowing nothing present in the clearing could hurt him. Equinox roared and continued fighting, stumbling with pain and burning with rage.

Lyra gritted her teeth, and suddenly wished her parents were there.

(0)

In the Abyss, four pairs of eyes opened at the exact same time, anger blazing in their irises.

"Lyra need us. . ." Mrs. Coulter whispered, her daemon snarling, as if something was menacing them.

"We're coming." Lord Asriel answered, his own daemon distorted with fury.

And suddenly, they slowly stopped falling, until they stopped in the middle of the dark emptiness. They were all looking upwards, where there was an opening to the World of the Dead, and then, into the world of the zalif.

"WE'RE COMING!" All four bellowed and suddenly blasted upwards with amazing speed, squinting their eyes against the wind that stung their faces, and at a small square of light that was coming steadily closer.

They had not seen the light of day for three years, having fallen in the Abyss all this time. And during those three years, angels were working on closing the huge window, now having only a small part of it left to shut.

But it was a hole bit enough to let both humans and their daemon through.

They burst out of it, and the dead and angels gaped up at the four beings. All looked at them, in awe, as they turned their heads towards the window to the zalif, and flew right out of it, joining at long last the world of the living.

They flew over the world, and up into the skies, searching for a window, or a passage to their daughter. It was not long before they realized there was no way of reaching her.

"We can't get through to her! She needs us, Asriel! What will we do?" Mrs. Coulter exclaimed as they floated in midair.

The man didn't answer at once.

"Hear her words and have faith." He said at last with a smile over his lips. He then shut his eyes and tilted his head to the side, as if he was listening. The daemons and Mrs. Coulter copied him, and suddenly, they heard Lyra.

"Mom, dad, where are you? They've asked me to do something, but I don't know how to do it! And I see him walking towards Will, because he's going to kill him. Please, don't let him hurt Will! Mom! Dad!" She screamed so loud with her very soul that the fabric of the worlds could not hold back her voice.

And suddenly, all four of them started to turn gold, until they were only a mass of particles floating in the air, amidst millions of other particles.

They followed Lyra's voice and very suddenly, found themselves in another world, standing near a girl with golden hair and dark eyes. They took their solid form again, and the girl's eyes flew open, gaping at them.

"Mom? Dad?" Lyra wondered, awed. They smiled at her, gliding towards her and placing themselves at her sides, as if readying for a war. The monkey and Stelmaria snarled at the raven-haired man that walked towards a boy and a large lion.

Aurore looked away from Will and Solstice and at the girl. She stood there, holding that forsaken Forseti, with two people at her sides, with their daemons. But they were not normal people: they were floating a foot in the air, and he saw that their Dust was mixing with the Dust of everything else.

The man gasped. "No. . .how can this be?"

"Go, Lyra." Will smiled. He knew she could do it.

Lyra scowled angrily, and shut her eyes. Forseti glowed, and her parents started to become golden again, turning into Dust.

Tenebrus blinked at them, stunned, and didn't see Equinox as the mighty lion threw himself on him and bit his side. The morphed wolf fell to the ground and screeched, Aurore following him into the dirt, hand over his heart.

Equinox held the daemon as hard as he could, praying this would help the girl. With a smile, he saw what was left of her Dust flow into the knife, which glowed stronger still. Her daemon also became gold-like, joining the blade.

Her parents and their daemons finally became golden particles and flowed into Forseti. Lyra opened her eyes.

Something flashed in them, and she was illuminated with a gold light that came from the knife. Aurora rolled over, groaning and looked in awe as the girl walked towards her brother, brandishing the blade.

"Let it guide you, Lyra. . ." She murmured, and fell back down to the ground, exhausted.

Will looked at his love, as she reached Aurore. The man then managed to get up, with a cry of pain, and started to run from her, leaving his own daemon behind.

Lyra stopped, and held the blade to her fore head. She started to glow with it, and Aurore turned around, horrified.

Before their eyes, Lyra disappeared, and at her place floated a huge golden bird, with a long neck and twisting tail. It spread his wings, opened his pointed beak and sang a note that sounded softly and distantly in the starting night.

Then, it flew upwards with two flaps of its great wings, singing its song like a bell of war.

Aurore tried to run, but Equinox bit Tenebrus harder and the man fell back down, whimpering in the grass as the bird flew back down at him.

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" He finally bellowed, as the huge bird swooped down at him, and went right into him. Aurore screamed, Tenebrus roared, and suddenly, the morphed daemon vanished into a puff of smoke.

The man was dead.

The golden bird flew out of his body, holding something black in its claws. It was Aurore's dark Dust, in the form of a small dragon, twisting and turning in the creature's grasp.

But the bird landed a few feet from Will and crushed the small dragon. It vanished like Tenebrus had.

Then, the bird turned to the boy on the ground and again sang that soft song, before also disappearing. Lyra lay in the grass, Forseti at her side, where the bird was a few seconds ago.

Will got up with a groan, and stumbled to her, kneeling at her side.

"Will, I did it." She laughed softly, and he laughed with her, tears streaming down his face. He had been so worried. . .

"I know. I'm so proud of you, Lyra. . .I love you so much!" He hugged her, and they cried together. When he let her go softly, and saw Mrs. Coulter, Lord Asriel and their two daemons standing near them.

"Mom, dad, did you see me? I did it." Lyra smiled tiredly at them. They smiled back.

"We saw it, Lyra." Mrs. Coulter said and a few tears fell from her eyes.

The girl sniffed, and Will wiped the tears that ran down her cheeks.

"So now, we're reunited, aren't we? You'll stay with me? We'll be a family again?" Lyra asked, looking at them with hope. But her parents looked down with a sigh.

Finally, it was Lord Asriel that spoke up.

"Lyra, we've been dead for a long time now. We've been falling in that Abyss since we defeated Metatron, three years ago. We came to you tonight because you needed us; we've been falling all this time because we knew that one day you'd need our strength. But now, it's our time to leave this world, and join the dead as Dust, and be everything, everywhere. We have to leave you now, but we'll always be there for you, except that you won't see us. Do you understand, Lyra?" His voice was kind and soft, and this convinced the girl. She looked down, but nodded.

Stelmaria and the golden monkey gently passed their paws in Pan's fur, as he lay in Lyra's lap, exhausted. The small daemon made a soft sound, and was answered by the two others.

"Bye, mom, bye dad. I. . .I'll miss you." The girl sniffed. Will held her hand to comfort her.

"We'll always be there, dear." Mrs. Coulter finally said. She smiled and waved, and Lyra waved back.

Then suddenly, they were all gone, leaving the clearing strangely silent and dark. It was Aurora that broke the silence as she sat up with a sigh.

Will, being the less weakened of them all, ran to the raven-haired girl to see if she was alright. She smiled and looked up at him.

"I told you that you could trust me." Aurora grinned.

Will grinned back, as Equinox helped Solstice to their human and lay next to his love. He looked at Will with grave eyes.

"You're quite the man, Will. And Lyra is the most amazing being that I ever saw. You were up to the challenge tonight. I congratulate you both." He said. It was the first time the male daemon spoke to him, and it warmed the boy's heart. He nodded at him.

"Will, you'll have to help us out here. Lyra needs more attention than me. Get some covers from Aurore's cave and wrap her up. The only thing that'll restore her Dust is rest, and she'll need the whole night of it." Aurora told him.

At once he obeyed her command, and took care of Lyra, which fell asleep in seconds. But not before Aurora promised her a few answers when she woke up.

After that, the boy lay down near his love and shut his eyes. Kirjava curled next to him, and both drifted towards sleep slowly, thinking over the strangeness of tonight's events. At least it was over.

(0)

TADAA! How was that? You'll learn what that golden bird was in the next chapter, when Aurora gets a few things clear.

Zaphdae: I like the plot, but I understand it's a bit shaky, because its hard to explain it to everyone and make sure everything is mentioned, when in my head, I already know what it is about.

I also know my writing needs a bit of works. I know it may seem shabby at places, but to make it perfect, I need several months of work on it, and I daresay I don't have that much time. : )

And I know the whole Lyra-Will thing had its meaning, because they would be reunited at last in death, as Dust and all, but I still disagree with it. It's just my opinion; I don't like the idea too much.

Thanks for your review, I appreciate it.

Ps: Your name is SO cool! It's really angel-like. I don't know if you were going for that, but its what it makes me think of.

Unnamed: Nope, not the last chapter yet. Last chapter is the next one, and yes, I'll talk about the sequel.

Quizgirl: No way that was the last chapter! Will and Lyra still have to figure out a solution to their love problem.

Thanks. I hope you update your story soon.

Dancerchick9293: Aurore is evil (duh). My book will be called For the cause.

FoxofRoses: That was the last one, I swear.

Kaiame: I don't know why, but I think I'm evil all of a sudden. . . it may have something to do with subliminal messages : )

Lobsstaceyters: Yeah, thanks. More coming up soon.

Next chapter, the fight is over, and finally, Lyra gets everything explained to her. And yet, there is still the fact that she doesn't want to be separated from Will. But the boy has found a solution to that: will it work?


	19. The solution

"Will, wake up. . ."

Someone shook him, and he shifted, groaning, trying to block out the light of day. He felt Kirjava's fur tickling his nose, and could smell Lyra as she slept next to him. And suddenly, he remembered the battle and victory of the night before, and his eyes split open.

He was looking up at Aurora's refreshed face, and the smell of cooking meat came to him. Will sat up and took a look around.

Near the stream, on which the light of day shone brightly there was Equinox in a black wolf form, grooming Solstice, who was a white wolf. When the daemon felt the boy's gaze on him, he looked up at him and bowed his head. Will smiled, and turned to Aurora.

Behind her, on a small fire, two rabbits roasted slowly.

"How are you feeling?" The girl asked kindly. Will sighed.

"I'm alright. . .it's Lyra I'm worried about. . .will she be alright?" He looked down at the sleeping girl, as she breathed in deeply. Kirjava nuzzled Pan, and the smaller daemon shifted with a sigh.

"She'll be just fine. It was an exhausting thing she did yesterday, and she'll need to rest a while before she can come around and face it. I expect she'll wake up in a few hours." Aurora sat down more comfortably at his side.

There was a moment of silence, before Will asked the question that had been burning his lips.

"What was that golden bird that Lyra became, when she defeated Aurore?" The boy questioned suddenly, turning his head to look at the raven-haired girl. But she wasn't looking at him; her gaze was directed at her daemons that were lounging near the stream. It was a moment before she answered.

"I'd rather wait till Lyra wakes up to answer, but I suppose I can tell you now. . .' She paused and looked over at him. 'That bird was the Lord of Dust. It is he who is Dust, as Dust is he. He is an ominous creature, like God, that is every single particle of Dust. I can't really explain him to you, because he is hard to understand. Even I sometimes am not sure. . . But he is the only thing that could destroy my brother, because Aurore no longer was a part of him. . .the Lord of Dust cannot harm anything that is a part of him: meaning he cannot harm anything that is covered in Dust.

My brother has long since rotten on the inside. He was nothing anymore. . .there was darkness and emptiness in him, and the Dust that flowed around him. . . it was rotting as well, although none who see Dust could see it. It wasn't a thing you saw. If you would have looked at him, you would have seen a torrent of gold around him, and would not have suspected a thing. Even I could not see it. But I felt it, deep in my heart. The Lord of Dust, if called, could destroy him by filling his emptiness, and then taking it away, with all his rotten Dust.

And Lyra was the only one that could call on him."

Will blinked, stunned.

"But. . .why Lyra?" He asked, lost for words.

Aurora sighed, looking at the girl.

"I'm not sure. . .but I think. . .yes, that must be it. . .' She turned back to the boy as if snapping out of a reverie. 'I think it is because Lyra is a part of him, more than anyone else in any of the worlds. Since the Lord is like a God, or even is THE God, if there ever was one, he can be a part of his creature.

WE are just covered in him. He is only around us. . .but as for Lyra. . .I think he is INSIDE her. She is a part of him, and yesterday, she was the very first human to have ever called him."

Will nodded, and tore his gaze from the sleeping angel.

"What will become of her when she dies?" He suddenly asked, fleeing the woman's gaze. Her brow had fallen down, as if she had understood something.

"You fear you won't be reunited with her as Dust when both of you die?"

The boy nodded shortly, and even though he didn't see it, Aurora smiled.

"I don't know, for I don't know the secrets of the Lord or of Death. But I know, Will, that there is a solution for you to see each other before you die, and be together. I know it, but you must find it, for only you can truly make it happen. I can give you a clue though: if you find the solution, and agree to it, you won't be together, but at the same time, you will. Think about it."

Leaving Will flabbergasted, she got up and went to check on the roasting rabbits, humming to herself.

(0)

All day Will sat in different spots in the clearing, sometimes looking at Lyra, sometimes lost in space, but all the time thinking.

He had passed every single idea in his head at least twice, but each solution to his and his love's problem was impossible. His mind was focused on one thing: he knew that to be together, one would have to live in the other's world, and they would get sick and die sooner. And he could not bear to leave Lyra here when he had suffered and died, or watch her die in his world.

He had slowly eaten the rabbit paw Aurora gave him, and then returned to his thinking. But to his eyes, there was no solution.

Lyra woke up a few hours after noon, and immediately, he rushed over to her, and kissed her, wondering at the same time when they would have to part.

The girl ate a bit, and then, as promised, Aurora told her everything. She told her the real story, as in how her brother's daemon had joined her, sharing the particles, and how her brother had gotten a second daemon by crossing the Desolation in this world.

At some times, Lyra stopped her, demanding fuller accounts and listening intently to everything she was being told.

"Then I wouldn't have been able to read the alethiometer, even if I had released my Dust?" She asked, frowning.

"No. As a matter of fact, if you had managed to release all your particles, not only would you have died, but the worlds would have shattered, and new windows would have been opened. The thing you worked so hard on stopping three years ago would start over." Aurora answered.

"So I'm not going to be able to read it?" Lyra looked downed.

But the woman shook her head. "I already told you: the Lord of Dust is a part of you; that's why you could read the alethiometer so well as a child. I understand it now. And he will be at your side if you need to read it. I'm not saying you'll get your gift back; only that you'll eventually learn, after much studying. You'll always be better at it than anyone else, because the Lord is in you."

The blonde looked relieved, and she grinned at Will. But then, her eyes suddenly came back to the raven-haired woman, and she scowled.

"But Aurore told me you and he had to release your Dust in order to change your daemon's forms."

Aurora smiled softly. "That was a lie to get you to trust him. Neither of us knows why our daemons still change, and I doubt we will ever know. They have no real form. Equinox and Solstice are unique, and strange all the way."

Both wolf daemons looked up from their sunlight spot near the stream, and as if to confirm they were special, both morphed into graceful brown horses, kneeling on the ground.

Lyra nodded thoughtfully.

"Well that explains. . .just one thing, though. . .how come I didn't feel that Aurore was evil, and how come that at some point, I felt as if I couldn't really obey Pan's warnings? I know that I wanted to listen to him, and at times I felt suspicious, but otherwise I trusted Aurore. . . I don't understand. . ."

Aurora smiled at Will, and the boy frowned at her. But something she had told him a while back (it seemed like centuries ago to him), came back to his mind.

"Remember, Lyra: what is truly evil will always want to be more beautiful and appealing, so it is harder to resist. My brother had a. . .dare I say?. . . charm; he ensnared his preys, and if you managed to feel suspicion at times, I congratulate you: you are strong. Usually, people follow him without question, and meet their ends. If you resisted, lest it be a tiny bit, you are stronger than anyone I know."

Lyra blushed, and quickly ate a bit of rabbit to dissimulate it.

Aurora smiled and looked away, pretending she hadn't seen a thing. Will, meanwhile, was trying to catch her gaze, but failed.

"Aurora. . .' He finally risked. ' I thought all day about your solution, and. . .I can't find it. . ."

But the woman did not look at him. Her gaze was set on her two daemons.

"Solutio' to 'at?" Lyra asked through a mouthful of food, looking at both of them.

The raven-haired woman finally spoke up.

"You over-thought things, Will. The solution lies in your hand, yet you ignore it and look at the horizon. Try again. And, if in doubt, try consulting the one that never lies." She said, getting up. Before either teen could shut their mouths, she had walked away towards Equinox and Solstice, leaving them alone.

"Her and her damned riddles. . ." Will hissed.

(0)

"The one that never lies. . ." Lyra scowled, sitting in the grass, next to Will. She had been mumbling that sentence every few minutes, gazing at the swaying green blades.

The boy also frowned, occasionally glancing at the woman that sat near the steam. . .but he knew she would not help them further. They had to figure this out.

He had filled his love out on all the details of the 'solution', and both had been trying to solve their problem.

And suddenly, Lyra jumped up, giving Will, Pan and Kirjava a jump. They three gazed at her as her eyes shone and she looked at a tree in the forest.

"The one that never lies. . ." She muttered, passing a hand on a small leather pouch at her belt. Will looked at her strangely, wondering if she had lost her mind. But then, she sat back down, fumbling with the pack, and quickly took a satin-covered object out.

Carefully, she took the alethiometer out of the folds of the material.

Will's face illuminated, and he understood.

"The one that never is lies is the alethiometer. . .of course! We've been over-thinking it all this time!" He exclaimed.

None of them saw it, but Aurora was smiling softly, listing to them.

"I should have known!' Lyra murmured, passing her fingers on the golden instrument. But she hesitated, and looked up at Will. 'Do you think I can do it?" Doubt passed on her features, shining in her eyes.

The boy nodded strongly, looking at her gravely.

"I believe in you, Lyra." He said truthfully. The doubt vanished from her face, and she grinned at him. Then, as Pan jumped onto her shoulder, she looked down at the alethiometer and her face became serious.

Slowly, she moved the three arrows towards different symbols, and the biggest hand flickered slowly.

'What is the solution?' She asked. The girl knew the alethiometer knew what she was talking about, so she didn't ask anymore. Slowly, as if to make sure she was following, the big arrow started to glide from symbol to symbol. Lyra followed it gravely, a scowl growing on her face.

It did the passage several time, and cleared all her doubt away, but the scowl did not vanish.

Finally, she blinked, emerging from her trance, and looked over at the boy. She was still frowning.

"What's wrong?" Will asked, noting her expression.

Lyra looked at the alethiometer, and then at Aurora, before turning back to Will. She seemed sure of what she was going to say, but not so eager to say it all the same.

"A child."

(0)

CLIFFY! I want to leave the 'parting' for next chapter, because I think this one is long enough. I hope you all understand what I mean by 'a child'. If you don't next chapter will explain everything.

Lobsstaceyters: Thanks. I felt Mrs. Coulter and Lord Asriel needed to come into the story somewhere.

Unnamed: Hope you liked this one. It didn't have that much action or anything, but the next one will be better, I swear.

FoxofRoses: Thanks. Lol.

Kaiame: Metatron just kept falling. Forgot to mention it. BTW, the have this weird urge to give you chocolate. . .wonder why. . .oh well, have this Caramilk (TM) (Hands over the chocolate).

Last chapter. Neither Will nor Lyra is sure what they will do. Will they have a baby together, to keep them united and separated at the same time? Can Lyra even have a child, in her world, or will she suffer is she does? And what will Aurora do to help?

All this and more on the last chapter!


	20. Selene

"A. . .a child?" Will stammered, gaping at Lyra. She sent him a confused look, and shrugged. The boy turned his head to Aurora, who was now openly smiling, and both her daemons were looking calmly at them.

There was silence, as the idea took root in Will's unsure mind.

"We should have. . .a kid?" He repeated, still looking at Aurora, with a disbelieving expression.

The woman turned her head to him and raised an eyebrow, as if she was expecting an answer. Lyra also looked over at her, with a difficult side-ways glance.

"Aurora. . .is. . .is this the solution?" The boy asked, wondering if this was some kind of joke.

But the woman got up, and walked up to them calmly, taking her time. She stopped a few feet from the pair, and looked at them with a serious, yet amused expression.

"It is the solution, Will. I could not tell it to you, because you would not have believed me. Now, however, you must make a choice. Which ever you chose, I don't care, for it is not my business. Just let me assure you that, if you chose to have the child, Lyra will not suffer at birth, or with the pregnancy. Her body has developed to the stage where it can carry a child without any problems, and during the pregnancy, Dame Hannah will surely take care of her.

'You have all night; I leave you to it." Without another word, she turned around, under the amazed gaze of both teens, and walked over to her daemons.

Equinox immediately morphed into a black stallion, standing proudly near his mate, which had taken on the form of a unicorn. Pan and Kirjava seemed to want to stay, but by the look the woman gave them, they understood this was a choice they could not influence.

Aurora got onto her daemon's back, and he carried her away, the unicorn, pine marten and cat following her into the dense forest.

Will and Lyra stared after them for a few minutes, until they got over the initial shock and stole a glance at each other. With a blush, both looked away.

"There's a thing I don't understand, though.' Will mumbled, 'If we have a kid, and you give birth to it, how is that going to unite us?"

Lyra glanced at him again. "I. . .It's because. . .our Dust will be in the child. It will be a living part of us, and through the fabric of the worlds, it will be our key to each other. I. . .I'm not sure how I know that, but I feel that it's the reason why we should have a child. . ."

She stopped and looked at the grass, which swayed gently in the dying day. Dusk was falling slowly, letting the stream sparkle beautifully.

Will nodded.

"Are. . .I mean. . .do you want. . to?" He looked at her, hesitating. But when she looked at him with those dark eyes, and smiled that beautiful smile, he knew the answer to his question.

They moved in closer one to another, their lips joining softly. After a few blissful seconds, he pulled away.

"Are you sure? I mean, it could be. . .weird. . .for you. . .and I'd hate to leave you like this, without any money or care for our child. . . and. . .aren't you too young?" He bit his lip softly, but her soft smile cleared his mind of doubt yet again.

"Hush, Will.' She whispered. 'Don't worry. I know what I want, and this is it. As for money and care, Jordan College is my home, and it will also be our child's. I'm sure we'll be alright.

Plus, I'm almost sixteen, and I think I'm old enough to decide." She said quietly.

And they kissed, Will gently pushing his tongue into her mouth.

He held her gently, and she ran her fingers through his dark hair, all thoughts gone from her head. Both let the passion of it overwhelm their minds, and drive them, doing something they had been dreaming about for a long time.

(0)

(Note: Sorry guys, but I suck at love scenes, so I'll just let your imagination take on its wild side and throw whatever pictures it wants into your head. If I suddenly discover a hidden talent at doing this kind of stuff, I'll post the scene up in a rebuffing of the story.)

Will opened his eyes and found himself on the ground-based bed he and Lyra had slept on after making love.

It was morning, meaning they had slept for the whole night, and right into next day. The day of their parting! The boy shut his eyes, wishing the time would never come.

But a noise forced him to open his eyes again. It sounded like fire. He turned around a bit, trying not to move too much and not wake Lyra up, as she slept next to him, cuddled to his chest. The young man saw Aurora kneeling near the fire, slowly turning a bit wooden spoon in a pot over the flames.

It smelled good, and looked like soup from where he was lying. The woman turned her head and saw he was awake.

Greeting him with a soft smile, she returned to her cooking. He had also smiled, but rather in a strained and awkward way, feeling it was strange to talk to someone who knew that he and Lyra had sex the night before.

But the woman didn't seem bothered, so he tried to shrug it off as well. Carefully, he shifted, and moved his love so she would keep sleeping on the lumpy pillow, and he could get up.

Will realized he didn't have any clothes on, and quickly searched the grass, only to find everything neatly folded and stacked near the bed.

He put his jeans and shirt on, before turning to Aurora, who was humming near the fire. The young man walked up to her determinedly.

"Hey." He said bluntly.

"Hello." She answered, barely looking up at him. Will could now see she was brewing a warm soup with meat and a few vegetables in it. It looked good.

"I. . .I need to ask you. . .' He sighed. 'Was it really a good idea?"

Aurora looked up at him from her crouch on the ground, and all he got was a dull stare.

"Will, it wasn't my choice. . ." She started, but he cut her off.

"I don't care!' Will suddenly exclaimed, and Lyra's eyes opened, although she didn't show anyone she had just woken up. 'What I want to know, is what YOU think about this."

Aurora smiled.

"I think it was a very good idea. Lyra will have no problems with the baby, and at last, somewhere, you will be united."

There was a moment of intense silence, and the woman took the soup off the fire, pouring some into three metal cups.

"How can you be so sure that it's actually worked? I mean, for all we know, the baby might not even have. . .you know. . .happened. . ." The boy pointed out. To his surprise, Aurora smirked and looked at him with mischief in her eyes.

"And my magic in all of this? Do you honestly think I'd let it fail?"

And the raven-haired woman walked over to Lyra, handing her the cup. Will gaped at both of them, amazed.

(0)

After eating the soup, all three of them, along with their daemons, walked back towards Oxford slowly, talking joyfully.

But neither younger kids felt happy.

Will held Lyra's hand, as if afraid she might suddenly vanish, and the girl kept sending him loving looks, wishing the time to part would never come.

But before they knew it, they were are the edge of the forest, at the place they had chosen to get separated at, and go back to where they belonged.

While Pan and Kirjava licked each other lovingly, and Aurora seemed very interested in making sure both her daemons were ready for the trip, both teens looked at each other painfully, wondering who was going to be the first to talk.

"So. . .see you next. . .next Summer's day, in the Botanical Gardens?" Will asked softly, blinking back the tears that threatened to stream down from his eyes. Lyra let out a soft sob, crying openly, and threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly.

Finally, she pulled away.

"I'll be there." She murmured, and watched him turn away, walking towards Solstice in determined, yet trembling steps.

As he climbed onto the daemon, he looked over at the girl.

"See you soon, then." He blew a quickly kiss at her.

Lyra smiled, and caught his kiss, winking.

Then, Kirjava playfully bit Pan's ear, and ran towards her human, leaping onto his lap, just as Solstice, in her hippogriff form, opened her wings, bent her knees, and went sailing into the air with one huge leap.

Lyra, waving from below, quickly disappeared from his sight as they caught up with Aurora, who was a but ahead. She had already said her goodbyes to Lyra, and allowed both of them to part, alone.

"So. . .it's the road to home now, isn't it?" Will choked on his sadness, glancing at the woman. She gave him a compassionate look and nodded.

During the rest of the trip, nothing was said.

(0)

Mary Malone paced around the kitchen nervously, glancing from time to time at her watch. She knew he was going to come, because she had learned the whole story about Will's disappearance a few days ago from Dust, and yesterday, it had told her he would coming back the next morning, at noon.

So the woman was walking around the kitchen, under Mrs. Parry's calm stare, muttering to herself.

"Calm down. If the machine said he was going to come, he'll be on time." Mrs. Parry said softly. Mary looked at her, nodded, but continued pacing.

Just then, a loud bang announced to them that someone had shut the front door brutally, and seconds later, two sets of steps came rushing up the stairs.

Into the kitchen burst Will and Kirjava, followed by a young woman with long black hair and two grayish rats on her shoulder. The odd pair stopped, and in a tangle of happy shouts and reaching arms, Will found himself being hugged by Mary and his mom.

When both women pulled away from the boy, they could focus more on the raven-haired woman that had come with their son.

"Hello, Aurora." Mary greeted with a smile.

"I see you've already learned the truth, Mrs. Malone. If Will wishes to speak to you of the things Dust did not tell you, he will. As for I, I believe it is time I leave." The woman inclined her head. The young man sent her an incredulous look.

"You're leaving already?" He questioned, almost insulted. Aurora grinned, in a sorry type of way.

"I'm sorry Will, but I think it is time I return to Cittagaze. My job here is done. It has been something unique and amazing to spend this time with you, and travel the worlds at your side, and have your help in defeating my brother. But I must leave. Home calls for me, and I cannot wait to answer its call.

And I promise I will watch over Lyra, whenever I can spare an eye. Goodbye Will, goodbye all of you."

The woman squeezed Will's shoulder gently, smiled at the two other women, who grinned back, thanking her mentally for watching over the boy, and she turned around, leaving.

Both her daemons morphed suddenly into strange, small birds with lovely human faces and began to sing a wonderful, wordless song. It was like a final goodbye, and it brought tears to Will's eyes.

With a final glance, Aurora left the trio behind and ran out the front door, the two birds leaving her shoulder, and flying overhead.

So Aurora Borealis was gone, and the few who saw her afterwards thought her to be a dark angel, or an unnatural being, but few got the chance: she lived away from all humans, enjoying her long, eternal life, learning things, and was rarely seen.

"So, what really did happen?" Mary asked a few minutes after the strange woman was gone.

Will sighed.

"Give me some time, and I'll talk when I'm ready." He finally said, wearily turning from the two women and walking up the stairs to his bedroom, there he locked himself up and cried all his soul, thinking about Lyra, and everything that had happened.

Before two o'clock he stopped grieving and feel into a deep sleep.

Meanwhile Mary and his mom let their imaginations run wild, wondering about everything they did not know.

(0)

Almost a year later, in an Oxford not so different from our own, a young woman around the age of seventeen walked up the stone steps of the Botanical Gardens, carrying a baby in her arms.

The child's daemon had taken the form of a small puppy, and was pouncing along after his human, yapping happily. The woman's daemon, a pretty pine marten, sent the puppy a reprimanding look, and it calmed down slightly.

Lyra walked through the gardens, all the way to a little bench between two tall trees. There she sat, looking at the old pendulum clock nearby.

"Come on. Be noon." She whispered urgently, watching the seconds tick by.

Pantalaimon urged Isil, the baby's daemon, onto the bench and began to lick his ear patiently.

And suddenly, noon struck on the first day of Summer, and a very warm, friendly feeling filled Lyra Silvertongue, making her smile and close her eyes.

After a few seconds, she raised the baby in front of her and looked its her dark eyes. She had Will's eyes, but her mom's blond hair. This made the new mother grin.

"Will, this is Selene, our daughter, and her daemon, Isil. I hope you're all right, however this year has been to you. I just want to tell you that everything is all right here. We live in Jordan, and Dame Hannah is still teaching me about the alethiometer. I'm getting better and better at it. The pregnancy wasn't so bad, and I don't regret our choice one bit. Aurora was right; this is the solution, because we are united inside Selene, even though she is not with you. I hope you're not too lonely. . . I love you Will, and even though you can't hear me say it, I want you to know it. . ." But Lyra paused, because it seemed she could hear something, like a whisper into her ear.

"I love you too, Lyra. Take care of Selene for me." Will whispered on his own bench, in his own Oxford, and the strength of his love carried his words through the fabric of the world's and right to Lyra's ears.

The blonde smiled, closing her eyes, and after a few seconds, she got up, and determinedly walked out, keeping her head high and clutching her baby girl, while both their daemons followed.

Will, meanwhile, kept sitting on the bench, Kirjava at his side, and simply relaxed, lost in his thoughts, until the hours slowly died away and dusk came around. Only then did he sigh, knowing that Lyra was finally too far away to hear the twinge of regret he felt, as he wished he could have her.

Then he got up, his heart calling for his daughter and his love, and walked out, feeling terribly lonely. Little did he know that his call was heard by none other than Selene herself, in her deep, baby sleep, and soon, she would answer to it.

(0)

What a terrible ending. Honestly, I was so not inspired when I wrote it. . .

But anyway, thanks you all who read this thing to the end, you guys are what kept me going, and I owe it all to you.

Lobsstaceyters: Hope you like this. I don't know how it went; I was tiered when I wrote the chappy, and I tried to make it as good as possible. Sorry if it sucked. Thanks for being there, and reviewing and stuff. I'll see you in the sequel.

Zaphdae: Thanks. As you see the fact that Lyra only had one baby kinda leads to a sequel. It'll be posted soon. I haven't decided if Aurora will be back in the next story. . .we'll see. . .

Lyraratemispotter: Will do. I didn't want Lyra to have twins, because then, there would have been a load of trouble to go through to get the other one to Will, and the twins would have to live apart. It would be sad. Besides, that allows me to do a sequel. Thanks for the review.

Unnamed: Yeah, I know the last one needed more action. And Solstice is good because she's kinda the opposite of Aurore, like Pan is cautious while Lyra is reckless and Aurora is kind while Equinox is violent.

FoxofRoses: Yeah, I know they're too young for kids, but hell, I had not better idea.

Quizgirl: Yeah, that's exactly it. The whole point of the sequel well be about Will missing both Lyra and his daughter. Read below the reviews for sequel info.

Kaiame: AH! Yes, here's the new chapter, and it's all for you! Please don't. . .hurt me. . .lol.

SEQUEL INFO!

Name: Their Child. (or something like that. Send in ideas if you have any)

Summary: Sequel to Lyra's Dust. Fourteen years have passed, and Selene starts having strange dreams about her father. In a desperate attempt to find him, she unleashes a great power and tears a huge window in the fabric of the worlds. Now the universes are dying and the girl needs to find a way to save everyone. But in all the chaos, will she get the chance to see her dad, or will all her efforts be in vain?


	21. Author's final note

Anotymous: Yeah, that was a possibility. But first of all, Will's knife no longer works, and second, the angels were almost done with the hole. And as for Aurora's blade (Forseti), she kept it. Will kept his knife as well.

Blue lyncan: Thanks. This is why I write.

xsummerbabyx: It's coming up. But read on below; there's a few changes done to the summary of the sequel since the last chapter.

lyraartemispotter: Sure, but keep reading below to see the changes that have been done to the summary of the sequel.

ellidiot: thanks. Read on for a new summary of the sequel.

Unnamed: Thanks. What I meant was: the title of the sequel will be Their Child, and I was hoping for people to send in better titles if they had any. And I think you'll like Isil's final form. . .that is, if she has any.

Foxofroses: Thanks a lot. Read on for a new summary of the sequel.

quizgirl: yeah, I didn't like the ending either. Actually, for the names, Selene means moon in Egyptian, and Isil means moon in Elvish. So they both mean moon. I lacked inspiration. . .

Lobs-Stacey-ters: Lol. Indeed it is my job, but I'd much appreciate help.

Kaiame: yeah, I know I suck and I'm blunt as a day of school. But I can't do anything about it. . .

SEQUEL SUMMARY! (CHANGED)

Title: Their child.

Summary: Sequel to Lyra's Dust. Ten years have passed, and things have changed. Selene, for one, does not like how things are going. With all her hate for her mother, and all her love for her father, she finally finds a way to be reunited with him. . .but for what cost?

THANKS ALL FOR BEING THERE FOR ME ALL ALONG! I LOVE YOU GUYS! SEE YOU IN THE SEQUEL!


End file.
